PERSON: Chris Collins

Politician

Christopher Carl Collins (born May 20, 1950) is an American politician and businessman who served as the U.S. representative for New York’s 27th congressional district from 2013 until his resignation in 2019. Collins was elected Erie County Executive in 2007 and held that position for one term. A member of the Republican Party, Collins was the first sitting U.S. Representative to endorse Donald Trump for President of the United States, and he served on Trump’s presidential transition team. He resigned his seat in 2019 and afterwards pleaded guilty to insider trading and lying to the FBI.

Collins and his son, Cameron Collins, were arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation on August 8, 2018, and charged with insider trading and making false statements. Three days later, Collins announced that he was suspending his bid for a fourth term in Congress; however, on September 17, 2018, he resumed his re-election campaign. Collins was narrowly re-elected to Congress on November 6, 2018, with his 2016 percentage of 67% reduced to 49%. On September 30, 2019, Collins announced his resignation from the House of Representatives. The resignation went into effect the following morning, and, later that day, Collins pleaded guilty. He was pardoned by President Donald Trump on December 22, 2020.

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