While all politicians are suspected expected to be liars, George Santos lies so much that new laws are being written to tamp down this stereotype. On March 20th, 2023, the Westchester County Board of Legislators (WCBOL) passed the “Truthful Disclosure by Candidates for Elective Office” amendment. This law essentially requires that candidates for political office submit background information for public review.
George Santos was elected to New York’s third U.S. Congressional district last November. Soon after, the entire nation learned that seemingly his entire resumé and personal history was fabricated. His education, professional work experience, and even matters of his personal life were proven–through the dogged work of the news media–to be flat-out lies. Even his name, George Santos, was suspect. Santos had formerly went by the name Anthony Devolder for many years prior to running for office.
This fraud committed on voters has brought much attention on who, and how, candidates are nominated to run for office. In response, earlier this year Westchester officials proposed a proactive measure to prevent our county from seeing its own Santos/Devolder. This concept had broad support from the start. The head of the WCBOL, Catherine Borgia, said of the proposal, “I think it’s important to put in place the public vetting process.” That explicit support has now been affirmed by the unanimous vote to approve the new law filed under 2023-85.
Candidates must file a personal disclosure
The local law for the Truthful Disclosure by Candidates for Elective Office requires candidates to submit a Candidate Disclosure Form. This form contains the educational, military, and professional histories of a potential candidate. And these potential candidate’s must certify that the form’s contents are “true and correct.” This disclosure, with minor redactions to protect personal family information, will be available to the public. The hope is that the transparency this process brings will cut-off any exaggerations or blunt falsifications presented by a candidate. The intent of this measure was affirmed by the body’s Majority Leader, Christopher Johnson.
At a time when the trust of the public is eroding, we need to ensure the public knows who wants to represent them. This is just one example of how Westchester continues to lead in making sure we are transparent in our service to the community.
Christopher Johnson – Majority Leader WCBOL
A short public hearing was held during last night’s meeting. No one spoke in opposition to these new rules.
