Florida Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick resigned from the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday, minutes before the House Ethics Committee was scheduled to meet and consider recommended sanctions against her, including the possibility of expulsion.
Her resignation letter was read into the record shortly after the Committee convened, reported CNN.
Cherfilus-McCormick, who represents Florida’s 20th Congressional District, has been under federal indictment since November 2025, as The Dallas Express previously reported. A grand jury in Miami charged her, her brother Edwin Cherfilus, and two others with conspiring to steal approximately $5 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster relief funds tied to a COVID-19 vaccination staffing contract and directing portions of the money toward her 2021 congressional campaign. She has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Her federal criminal trial has been delayed until February 2027.
On March 26, the adjudicatory subcommittee held a public hearing to determine whether any counts in the “Statement of Alleged Violations” had been proven by clear and convincing evidence. After deliberation that lasted until well past midnight, the subcommittee found that Counts 1–15 and 17–26 of the violations against Cherfilus-McCormick had been proven.
That amounted to 25 total separate ethics violations confirmed against her.
In her resignation statement, Cherfilus-McCormick called the ethics process unfair and a threat to due process. She said the panel moved forward at the same time that her criminal indictment was pending, which she argued prevented her from properly defending herself, calling it “a dangerous path” that “should concern every American, regardless of party.”
— Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (@CongresswomanSC) April 21, 2026
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) responded with their own statement on Tuesday, reading: “Rep. Cherfilus-McCormick did the right thing by stepping down, but she should not have waited until the moment before potential expulsion to do so. The wrongdoing alleged in the federal indictment and corroborated in the Committee’s investigation demonstrated that she should not have authority over the appropriation of taxpayer funds.”
“Rather than resigning sooner, she spent months dragging the scandal on while cashing paychecks from American taxpayers. You don’t get credit for doing the right thing only when forced to, after repeatedly doing the wrong thing,” CREW added.
House Speaker Mike Johnson described the resignation as “a sad day for the institution” and stated he believed she “was on the path to be expelled from the body,” per CBS.
The resignation does not resolve her legal situation. If convicted on the federal charges, Cherfilus-McCormick could face up to 53 years in prison. Her brother faces up to 35 years, and co-defendant Nadege Leblanc faces up to 10 years.
Cherfilus-McCormick is the third House member to resign since mid-April. Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., and Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, stepped down last week amid separate allegations of sexual misconduct, as previously reported on by The Dallas Express.
Her departure leaves the House with 218 Republican-aligned members and 213 Democrats, with four seats remaining vacant.
