New York's incoming congressman is standing firm on an unusual campaign-trail talking point: freeing Sean “Diddy” Combs from federal prison. Anthony Constantino, the Republican who narrowly won an upstate New York congressional seat, told reporters this week that he has not followed the music mogul's trial at all, but still believes President Donald Trump should pardon him.
No Regrets Over the Election-Night Remark
Constantino made the comment during a stop outside a House GOP leadership forum on Capitol Hill, telling TMZ DC on Tuesday that he was standing by his election-night speech calling on the president to pardon Combs, according to Cleveland.com. When a reporter noted his view of Combs was interesting, Constantino didn't flinch. “I'm not scared to say things,” he said, per the outlet's report.
Pressed further, Constantino acknowledged he hadn't actually followed the case against Combs, who was convicted in 2025 on two counts of transportation for prostitution, according to The New York Times. Still, he framed Combs as an economic asset to New York. “New York City in particular is going down the tubes. Upstate's going down the tubes. All the buildings are empty … He was a job creator,” Constantino said, the same report indicates. He added that “it's about creating jobs, excitement, enthusiasm,” tying the pardon talk directly to his broader pitch of revitalizing the state.
A Victory Speech That Started It All
The pardon push isn't new. During his election victory speech, Constantino told supporters, “I think President Trump should consider freeing Diddy,” as reported by NJ.com. That outlet reported Constantino had captured 50.9% of the vote in New York's 21st District, with 140,119 votes to Democrat Blake Gendebien's 48.9% and 134,390 votes, as of the Wednesday after Election Day.
In separate remarks covered by Raw Story, Constantino said he planned to look into the damage done to Combs' reputation and predicted Combs would eventually walk free regardless of what happens next. “He's gonna be out in two years. One way or another, he's gonna be released in two years,” Constantino said, according to Raw Story. That timeline reflects Constantino's own prediction rather than a confirmed release date.
Conflicting Details on the Sentence and the Candidate's Age
Accounts of Combs' punishment vary slightly depending on the outlet. Cleveland.com described him as serving a four-year prison sentence, while The 19th reported in October 2025 that a federal judge had sentenced Combs to 50 months in prison — just over four years — along with a $500,000 fine, as reported by The New York Times. Separately, a U.S. Department of Justice snippet from the Southern District of New York references an item titled “Sean Combs Sentenced to 50 Months' Imprisonment for Sex Offenses,” though the underlying page could not be independently verified.
Constantino's own age has also been reported inconsistently. NJ.com listed him as 44, while Mother Jones described him as a 43-year-old businessman in earlier coverage. Either way, Constantino arrives in Washington with an unusual resume: he owns a printing business, was once a professional boxer, and released a full-length hip-hop album titled “Thank You, President Trump” earlier this year. That album included pro-Trump anthems such as “MAGA Again,” “Art of the Deal,” and “Fight,” a track that recounted the 2024 assassination attempt on Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, per Cleveland.com's reporting.
Whether Constantino's push for clemency gains any traction with the White House remains to be seen, but the congressman-elect has made clear he isn't backing down from the subject as he heads into his freshman term representing upstate New York.
