Indicted Rep. Chris Collins To Remain On Ballot This November, Giving Dems A Gift

on August 8, 2018 in New York City.
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 08: Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) walks out of a New York court house after being charged with insider trading on August 8, 2018 in New York City. Federal prosecutors have charged Collins, one of P... NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 08: Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) walks out of a New York court house after being charged with insider trading on August 8, 2018 in New York City. Federal prosecutors have charged Collins, one of President Trump's earliest congressional supporters, with securities fraud, accusing the congressman and his son of using inside information about a biotechnology company to make illicit stock trades. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) MORE LESS
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Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) will remain on the ballot this November, a Republican source with knowledge of his decision tells TPM, a blow to the GOP’s hopes of holding onto a seat once viewed as safely Republican.

The move comes after a month of legal wrangling in which Collins, who’s under indictment for insider trading, sought to get off the ballot and give another Republican a chance to hold the seat for the party this fall.

But the deadline to remove himself had passed — and Collins’ change of heart and decision not to cooperate with local Republicans leaves them stuck with the indicted congressman as their candidate.

“At this point they’d have to accept and cooperate with any plans they’d put in place. They’ve chosen not to do so,” Erie County Republican Chairman Nick Langworthy said in a Monday press conference. “I’m disappointed.”

With Collins on the ballot, Democrats have a serious shot at winning a conservative upstate New York district that President Trump carried by a 25-point margin just two years ago, the latest headache for the GOP. Republican strategists privately concede that their chances of hanging onto House control are slim.

The Buffalo News first reported Collins’ decision.

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