Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) resigned on Monday, one day before he is expected to plead guilty to federal charges of insider trading.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) deputy chief of staff, Drew Hammill, confirmed to TPM that her office had received the embattled lawmaker’s letter of resignation, effective Tuesday.
The Buffalo News first reported on Collins’ departure.
Available information on the trial docket in Southern District of New York show that a “Change of Plea Hearing” in Collins’ criminal case has been scheduled for Tuesday at 3 PM EST.
Bloomberg and the New York Times reported on Monday that Collins, a staunch supporter of President Donald Trump and the first congressional lawmaker to endorse his 2016 campaign, will change his plea to guilty during the hearing.
After Collins was arrested and indicted in August 2018, the Republican lawmaker first pleaded not guilty, insisted that he was innocent and called the arrest “the shock of all shocks.”
He temporarily suspended his reelection campaign before returning back to the race (while using campaign donations to pay for his legal fees) and beat Democratic challenger Nate McMurray in November.
This past April, the congressman said he wanted to “see where the court case stands” before deciding whether he wanted to run for reelection again. His trial date was originally set for February 3, 2020.
