- Rep. George Santos introduced himself as Anthony Devolder in a recently surfaced video from 2019.
- Videos and social media posts reveal Santos previously used the names George Devolder and Anthony Devolder.
A recently surfaced video clip from 2019 shows Rep. George Santos introducing himself as Anthony Devolder, prompting questions about why the congressman has previously gone by different names.
In the video posted by the Twitter account Patriot Takes, Santos addresses a panel during an event in New York City featuring conservative commentators who are part of the LGBTQ community.
"My name is Anthony Devolder. I'm a New York City resident. I've recently founded a group called United for Trump, so if you guys want to follow, that would be awesome," Santos says.
—PatriotTakes (@patriottakes) January 13, 2023
In the video, Santos addresses Brandon Straka, a self-described former liberal who launched the Walk Away campaign to encourage Democrats to leave the party and calls him an "idol to all of us."
He then directs a question to Straka and fellow panelist transgender YouTuber Blaire White about educating transgender people away from "the narrative that the media and the Democrats put forward."
The New York congressman has admitted to lying about his college and work history and has previously listed his full name as George Anthony Devolder Santos.
However, his full legal name cannot be confirmed as his birth certificate has not been made public, and it is not clear why he has gone by multiple variations of that name.
Other resurfaced clips and social media posts reveal that Santos had gone by the names Anthony Devolder and George Devolder until as recently as 2020.
He ran for Congress in New York for the first time in 2020 under the name George Santos before losing to the Democratic incumbent Thomas Suozzi.
In a video taken during his 2020 campaign, also shared by Patriot Takes, a speaker introducing him expresses confusion about why he changed his name from Anthony Devolder to George Santos.
CNN also uncovered social media posts from 2020 in which Santos goes by the name George Devolder.
Democratic Rep. Ted Lieu took to Twitter to address Speaker Kevin McCarthy and raise concerns about Santos' many names.
—Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) January 14, 2023
Democratic Rep. Maxwell Frost also tweeted weighed in on the controversy and questioned, "which is the fake name."
—Maxwell Alejandro Frost (@MaxwellFrostFL) January 13, 2023
Santos has been accused of fabricating significant elements of his resume and numerous facts about his life and family history.
In an interview with Rep. Matt Gaetz on Thursday, the congressman claimed that he has lived "an honest life" and has "never been accused of any bad doing."
Santos has also faced calls to resign from other Republicans.