A woman that Congressman George Santos (R-NY) called his “bestie” is a right-wing Republican fundraiser who spent years promoting an Albanian politician who has been barred from entering the U.S., a new report by The Daily Beast revealed Tuesday.
Evi Kokalari, also known as Evi Angelakis, is an NYC-based fundraiser who hosted an event for Santos in late October 2020 and who he has called his best friend in a tweet. She was also a go-between between then-President of Albania Illir Meta and the former U.S. Ambassador to Albania Yuri Kim, The Daily Beast reported.
A native of Queens, NY, Kokalari even traveled in the political circles of fellow Queens native former President Donald Trump.
But The Daily Beast’s story focused on her links to Albania’s ex-Prime Minister Sali Ram Berisha, a man the State Department had banned from traveling to the U.S. over accusations of public corruption The report said that she spread propaganda linking U.S. sanctions against Berisha to liberal billionaire George Soros, and that she claimed to have won the support of several members of Congress for her claims.
Kokalari’s mission was to make Berisha a softer target to draw less attention from U.S. political regulators, The Daily Beast said. She even made a speech to the internal assembly of the Albania Democratic Party in which she said, “Our loyalty belongs to America and not special interests. We have vowed to protect the U.S. from enemies like [George] Soros.”
According to Albanian media, Kokalari made at least nine trips to Albania as part of her outreach for Berisha, The Daily Beast said. Reporters in that country raised questions about if Berisha was funding her trips, and if she registered as a representative of a foreign government.
“I have nothing to report to the Department of Justice,” Kokalari told The Daily Beast. “If you think that my involvement in politics in America has something to do with Albania, you’re losing your mind.” She told the outlet she severed connections with Santos in 2021.
Santos did not respond to questions, The Daily Beast said.
