But he narrowly avoided becoming the first representative since the Civil War to be removed from office without a criminal conviction, and only the sixth member of the House to be expelled in the body’s history.
Representative Kelly Armstrong, a Republican from North Dakota who is a former public defender, had predicted the expulsion of Mr. Santos would fail over due-process concerns.
“What’s the point of having the Ethics Committee, if you don’t let them do their work?” Mr. Armstrong said hours before the vote.
He added that he believed Mr. Santos should resign, but absent a decision from the “Ethics Committee or a conviction, it turns into a political vote.
“You don’t get to get rid of due process in the hardest cases,” he said.
Persons:
Kelly Armstrong, Santos, “, Mr, Armstrong, ”
Organizations:
Republican
Locations:
North Dakota, “