Barstool Sports' Bill Cotter running for Congress in former George Santos district — says New York 'getting out of control'

Barstool Sports commentator and Queens native Bill Cotter is running for congressional office in New York's third district as a Republican.

Cotter, aka Billy Football, will attempt to unseat Tom Suozzi in NY-03, the wealthiest district in the state. The seat was of course vacated by Republican George Santos when he was expelled from the House of Representatives. Santos has planned to run again in NY-01.

Cotter is running on a strong conservative platform as a Catholic and resident of the area. His target issues reflect that of many modern MAGA enthusiasts but also topics that have bipartisan appeal.

"What happened to the American dream? What happened to feeling good about not only this country but state?" Cotter told Newsmax.

"You would never allow your kid to take the public transport nowadays, with all the crime that's happening. There's shootings. There's stabbings. There's people running around New York City just randomly punching people in the face on their phones. It's terrible. The situation is getting out of control."

The 25-year-old also noted that the city has not properly supported the police, which is included on his platform along with supporting the Second Amendment.

"What part of 'shall not be infringed' is so hard to understand?" his website read. Other platform points have included preventing insider trading, ending the opioid crisis, and holding "Big Pharma" accountable.

Along with requiring voter identification and securing the border, Cotter is surely to win some hearts and minds with his sentiments on affordable housing.

Cotter explained that even some of his richest friends cannot see themselves buying a house in the next few years.

"There's a housing crisis in this country. If you ask anyone in my generation, 'Hey, do you think you can buy a house in the next five years?' none of them even have a chance of saying, 'Yes,'" he told Fox News' Martha MacCallum. "Inflation's robbing our savings, the value of a dollar is going down and wages aren't increasing, and we're stuck in a situation as younger members of the population where we don't see the American dream," he continued.

"I want to restore that confidence and that belief in the American dream."

While the Fox News host questioned whether Cotter had acquired and submitted the necessary number of signatures, Cotter's team has since confirmed via social media that he is indeed on the list for a June 25, 2024, Republican primary.

When asked if he would be receiving support from Barstool Sports owner Dave Portnoy, Cotter said that he would "have to earn" his vote just like everyone else's.

When asked if he was a Trump supporter, Cotter flipped the question and said that he would have to be an "idiot" to reject support at the grassroots level from the 45th president.

Voting in the third district of New York has historically been tight. No candidate has won by more than 59% of the vote since Peter King dominated the district for 20 years from 1993-2013.

The last Republican candidate for the district was Mazi Melesa Pilip, who lost to Suozzi by less than 14,000 votes in February 2024.