Democrats win George Santos' seat in the US House of Representatives.
The seat became available after the House expelled Republican George Santos; the Brazilian was accused of lying about his biography, leading to his indictment for fraud.
NEW YORK (Reuters) Former Democratic Representative Tom Suozzi won a special election on Tuesday for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives representing New York State, narrowing the Republican majority, which has struggled to pass legislation.
The vacancy became available after the House took the extraordinary step of expelling Republican George Santos, whose series of lies about his biography led to his indictment on fraud charges.
Suozzi, who held the seat before resigning to run for governor, defeated Mazi Pilip, a local lawmaker born in Ethiopia who served in the Israeli army. The district includes a small part of New York City and some of its eastern suburbs.
The victory reduces the Republican majority to 219 to 213, making it more difficult for the party to manage an unruly caucus. Its challenges were visible last week when the House failed to impeach President Joe Biden's top border official, Alejandro Mayorkas, in an embarrassing setback.
The House approved the measure on a second attempt Tuesday, after Republican Steve Scalise returned from cancer treatment to cast the deciding vote.
More challenges await as House Speaker Mike Johnson decides whether to accept a Ukraine aid bill passed by the Senate on Tuesday, and Congress faces a deadline to avoid another government shutdown next month.
The district, which supported Biden in 2020 before opting for the Republicans in the 2022 midterm elections, served as a test for both parties' messages ahead of the November election, when the presidency and control of Congress will be at stake.
A moderate Democrat, Suozzi pledged to work with Republicans to resolve difficult issues, including the immigration crisis on the U.S. southern border.
"The people of Queens and Long Island are fed up with political infighting," he said during his victory speech. "They want us to come together and solve problems."