Republicans have a “real chance” to keep George Santos’ former congressional seat red after the admitted serial liar and federal criminal defendant was expelled from office last week, ex-Long Island GOP Rep. Peter King told The Post Thursday.
“This special election is going to be World War III. Each side is going to pour $10, $20 million into this race with donations coming from all over the country,” said King, who represented a neighboring district for 28 years before retiring in 2021.
The Democrats were expected Thursday to officially announce their nomination of former Rep. Tom Suozzi to run in the Feb. 13 special election to replace Santos in New York’s 3rd Congressional District.
While many experts believe the seat will flip back to Democrats — in part due to Santos’ bizarre and sordid tenure in the House — King pointed out the district is more GOP-friendly following the most recent round of redistricting.
The area now includes the suburbs of Levittown, Farmingdale, and Massapequa — all of which used to be part of King’s 2nd Congressional District — as well as other other parts of Long Island and eastern Queens that trend more conservative in outlook.
To take on Suozzi, King said the GOP screening panel on which he serves is recommending “2 or 3 candidates” for party leaders to consider for the nomination.
During an interview Thursday, King talked up Nassau County Legislator Mazi Pilip — who is actually a registered Democrat who ran as a Republican and won the district that covers Great Neck, once a Democratic stronghold with a large Jewish population.
King made it clear that he’s a fan of Pilip, an Ethiopian refugee who served as an Israeli paratrooper when she lived in the Jewish state and has seven children.
“Mazi always impresses. She’s a good campaigner. I’ve seen her in action. She can handle anything,” King said.
Another mooted contender, state Sen. Jack Martins, has indicated he will stay in Albany and not seek federal office, King added.
Meanwhile, the exiled Santos is refusing to stay quiet about the heated battle to succeed him.
“The Nassau GOP is going to nominate either a Democrat or a Democratic donor to replace me. Let that sink in,” Santos whined in a video posted to his X account Wednesday.
On Monday, the 35-year-old appeared to endorse Mike Sapraicone, the CEO of Squad Security and retired NYPD detective, in the race to succeed him before claiming Wednesday he was being sarcastic.
“Mike Sapraicone is a prolific Democrat donor who donated almost $40,000 to Tom Suozzi’s gubernatorial primary campaign in 2022,” Santos fumed.
Sapraicone had already slapped down Santos’ apparent support, blasting him as a “crook and fraud.’”
King said Thursday that Sapraicone is also a top-tier potential GOP candidate, along with Afghanistan war veteran Kellen Curry.
Suozzi represented the 3rd District for six years before resigning to mount an unsuccessful primary challenge against incumbent Gov. Kathy Hochul last year. The Democrat had dispatched Santos by 12.5 percentage points in the 2020 house election.
Since his expulsion, Santos has embarked on something of a revenge tour, filing numerous ethics complaints against members of Congress.
He has also started a side hustle on Cameo, a video sharing platform in which celebs cut clips for various patrons.
