Democrats are demanding that Republican George Santos, New York’s newly elected representative, step aside after admitting to fabricating parts of his CV, lying about his education and making misleading statements about being Jewish.
The Republican Jewish Coalition on Tuesday said the Congressman-elect said he deceived the organisation by misrepresenting his heritage.
"In public comments and to us personally he previously claimed to be Jewish. He has begun his tenure in Congress on a very wrong note," the RJC said, adding that Mr Santos would not be invited to any of its future events.
Ted Lieu, a Democratic US Representative and incoming vice chairman of the House Democratic caucus, called on Mr Santos to resign.
"If he does not, then @GOPLeader should call for a vote to expel @Santos4Congress,” Mr Lieu tweeted.
Mr Santos confessed to lying on Monday.
In an interview with The New York Post, Mr Santos said: “My sins here are embellishing my resume. I’m sorry.”
But Democrats want more than an apology.
“Santos’s lies were well known among House GOP leadership, who considered them a 'running joke',” New York representative-elect Dan Goldman tweeted.
“If GOP leadership seats Santos in Congress, they will confirm that the Republican Party does not believe in fair elections. Democracy is not a joke. Let’s see if Republicans agree.
“He didn’t graduate college, didn’t work on Wall Street and isn’t Jewish — all of which he asserted in order to dupe the voters in Queens and Nassau. Santos is not fit to be a member of Congress. He must resign.”
The Jewish-American website The Forward has questioned a claim made on Mr Santos’s campaign website, which said that his grandparents “fled Jewish persecution in Ukraine, settled in Belgium, and again fled persecution during WWII”.
“I never claimed to be Jewish,” Mr Santos told the Post. “I am Catholic. Because I learnt my maternal family had a Jewish background, I said I was ‘Jew-ish.’”
Some members of Congress are calling for an investigation into Mr Santos.
“We’ve seen people fudge their resume but this is total fabrication,” Representative Joaquin Castro said on Twitter, proposing the Republican “should also be investigated by authorities”.
The New York Times raised questions last week about the life story that Mr Santos had presented during his campaign.
For example, it found that he had lied about obtaining a degree from Baruch College in New York, as the school has no record of his time there.
On Monday, Mr Santos acknowledged: “I didn’t graduate from any institution of higher learning. I’m embarrassed and sorry for having embellished my resume.
“I own up to that … We do stupid things in life.”
Mr Santos also said he had worked for Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, but neither company could find any records verifying that.
He told the Post that Link Bridge, an investment company where he was a vice president, did business with both.
“Even used cars come with greater protections for buyers in the state of New York,” tweeted former New York politician Steve Israel.
“You have defrauded the people I used to represent. Shameful.”
Mr Santos first ran for Congress in 2020 and lost. He ran again in 2022 and won in the district that includes some Long Island suburbs and a small part of Queens.
US midterm elections 2022 - in pictures
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US Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a Democrat rally in Washington, as President Joe Biden and their spouses Jill Biden and Doug Emhoff listen. Bloomberg -
Bill Gates, chairman of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, speaks at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Centre in Phoenix, Arizona. Former astronaut and Democratic candidate Mark Kelly defeated his Republican rival in Arizona's senate race. Reuters -
Maricopa County recorder Stephen Richer, left, opens mail-in ballots at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Centre in Phoenix, Arizona. Ballots were being counted in Maricopa County three days after voters went to the polls for the midterm election in Arizona. AFP -
Election workers open mail-in ballots at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Centre in Phoenix, Arizona. AFP -
Staff scan ballots for the US midterm elections at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Centre in Phoenix, Arizona. Reuters -
Election workers open mail-in ballots at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Centre in Phoenix, Arizona. AFP -
In a divided America, a political campaign sign sits abandoned at the roadside in Phoenix, Arizona, two days after the midterms. AFP -
Ballots are processed in Las Vegas. Getty Images -
Election officials give a press conference in Maricopa County, Arizona, where ballots were still being counted two days after the midterms. AFP -
Ballots are carried to be scanned in Philadelphia. Reuters -
Mr Biden was all smiles during a news conference in the White House. Bloomberg -
An election worker sorts ballots in Las Vegas. AFP -
Election workers sort ballots at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Centre. AFP -
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger holds a news conference in Atlanta. AP -
Los Angeles mayoral candidate Rick Caruso gets a hug on stage at his election night headquarters in Los Angeles. AP -
Paul Riley, father of Josh Riley, bows his head as election results come in at his son's election party in Binghamton, New York. Josh Riley, the Democratic candidate, ran against Republican Marc Molinaro. AP -
Michigan Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer speaks during election night in Detroit. AP -
Supporters cheer during an election night event for Democratic Senate candidate John Fetterman in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Mr Fetterman defeated Republican Senate candidate Dr Mehmet Oz. AFP -
Supporters watch news of a projected victory for Democratic candidate for Pennsylvania governor, Josh Shapiro, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Reuters -
Republican J D Vance arrives with his wife Usha to declare victory in the Senatorial race in Columbus, Ohio. Reuters -
New York Governor Kathy Hochul attends an event to celebrate her victory in the US midterm elections. Reuters -
Representative Abigail Spanberger, of the Democratic party, speaks to supporters after her re-election, in Fredericksburg, Virginia. AP -
Democrat Wes Moore, second from left, hugs his daughter, Mia, centre, as his mother, Joy Thomas Moore, left, son, Jamie, second from right, and wife, Dawn, look on, after he was declared the winner of the Maryland race for governor. AP -
A supporter of Republican candidate Lee Zeldin reacts as media outlets predict results, in the race for governor, in favour of Democratic incumbent Kathy Hochul. AP -
Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt celebrates his re-election, at a Republican Party watch party in Oklahoma City. AP -
Democratic candidate for governor of Georgia Stacey Abrams speaks during her 2022 US midterm elections night party in Atlanta, Georgia. Her rival Brian Kemp won. Reuters -
A woman arrives before Florida's Republican Governor Ron DeSantis speaks to supporters during an election night party in Tampa. AP -
Voters wait in line at a polling station at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs in Austin, Texas. AP -
A voter goes to cast their vote after filling out their ballot at a polling station inside The Shed arts centre in Manhattan. AP -
A jogger runs past the Capitol Building in Washington. The US midterm elections are held every four years at the midpoint of each presidential term. EPA -
Florida's Republican Governor Ron DeSantis waves from the stage next to his wife Casey and children during his midterm elections party in Tampa. Reuters -
A man in costume arrives for a Republican party 'Save America' rally before the US midterm elections, in Miami, Florida. AFP -
US President Joe Biden, centre, poses for a selfie with supporters during a rally for Democratic candidates, including New York Governor Kathy Hochul, at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York. AFP -
A man marks his ballot during early voting in Lansing, Michigan. Reuters -
A child attends a rally held by US President Joe Biden with Democratic nominee for Maryland Governor Wes Moore, Senator Chris Van Hollen and other Maryland Democrats, at Bowie State University. Reuters -
Supporters cheer during a rally for Democratic candidates at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York. AFP -
State Representative Leslie Rossi poses by a giant cutout of former US President Donald Trump in front of the "Trump House", which she owns and created in 2016, in Youngstown, Pennsylvania. AFP -
Republican candidate for US Senate for Arizona Blake Masters speaks at a rally in Queen Creek, Arizona. EPA -
People in the crowd cheer during a campaign rally at Bowie State University in Maryland, which was attended President Joe Biden, the first lady, Jill Biden, Maryland Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wes Moore and Senator Chris Van Hollen. AP -
Republican candidate for Arizona governor Kari Lake arrives for a campaign stop, in Phoenix. Reuters -
Morgan Koetje and Nickolas Lentz from Reproductive Freedom for All, canvass a neighborhood in support of Proposal 3, a ballot measure that would codify the right to an abortion, one day before the midterm election in Dewitt, Michigan. Reuters -
Republican candidate for US Senate Herschel Walker takes a picture with supporters in Kennesaw, Georgia during a "Unite Georgia Bus Stop" campaign rally on the eve of the midterm elections. AFP -
Republican Senate candidate Val Demings speaks to supporters in Wilton Manors, Florida. AP -
Senate hopeful Mehmet Oz addresses campaign rally in Pennsburg, Pennsylvania. AP -
Former president Donald Trump speaks at a rally in support of the campaign of Ohio Senate candidate JD Vance, at Dayton International Airport. AP -
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden arrive for the rally at Bowie State University, in Maryland. AP -
Voters pass by a sign outside a polling site in Warwick, Rhode Island after casting their ballots on the last day of early voting before the midterm election. AP -
Democratic candidate for Georgia governor Stacey Abrams speaks to volunteers during an election eve phone and text bank party in Atlanta. AP -
US Vice President Kamala Harris, left, points to Los Angeles mayoral candidate Representative Karen Bass, after speaking at a rally in Los Angeles. AP
Associated Press contributed to this report
