George Santos’s treasurer resigns amid scrutiny over finances

The treasurer for Rep. George Santos’s (R-N.Y.) campaign has resigned, according to a letter sent to the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) Tuesday. 

Nancy Marks, who served as treasurer for Santos’s 2020 and 2022 campaigns, said in a letter to the FEC that she left her position Wednesday. 

“At the request of the FEC, I am submitting this Form 99 stating that I have resigned as treasurer for the Devolder-Santos For Congress Committee as of January 25, 2023,” she said. 

The campaign had begun preparing for Marks to leave her role last week, but an obstacle occurred when the expected replacement said he would not serve in the role. 

Santos’s campaign and other affiliated groups sent an update to the FEC on Wednesday that Thomas Datwyler, who has worked as a Republican operative, will replace Marks as treasurer. But Datwyler’s attorney said Datwyler told the campaign that he will not serve in the role. 

“On Monday we informed the Santos campaign that Mr. Datwyler would not be serving as treasurer,” attorney Derek Ross said. “It appears there’s a disconnect between that conversation and the filings today, which we did not authorize.” 

Every political committee needs to have a treasurer to raise or spend money, according to federal law. 

The treasurer is also responsible for overseeing a campaign’s filings to the FEC. The filing deadline for the end of 2022 is Tuesday. 

The Hill has reached out to Santos’s office for comment and to clarify who is replacing Marks. 

Marks’s resignation comes as Santos has faced questions and increased scrutiny over his campaign finances. Local and federal investigators have launched probes into Santos’s finances, and multiple ethics complaints based on allegations of campaign finance violations have been filed against Santos. 

He submitted an amended campaign filing to the FEC last week to indicate that a $500,000 loan and a $125,000 loan that he said came from his personal funds came from another source. 

The New York Republican announced Tuesday that he will step down from two committee assignments temporarily while the controversies play out.