WASHINGTON — After a rare and dramatic public hearing, a special House Ethics subcommittee on Friday found Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., guilty of 25 ethics charges, capping a three-year investigation into allegations she stole millions in federal relief funds and funneled some of that to her congressional campaign.
The secret vote came after Cherfilus-McCormick and her attorney sat for a nearly seven-hour televised House trial, after which lawmakers on the panel deliberated overnight for hours before reaching their decision.
Cherfilus-McCormick has denied wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty in a separate but related federal criminal case.
“I look forward to proving my innocence," the congresswoman said in a statement. "Until then, my focus remains where it belongs: showing up for the great people of Florida’s 20th District who sent me to Washington to fight for them.”
The decision likely sets the stage for Cherfilus-McCormick’s ouster from Congress. Even before the trial, GOP Rep. Greg Steube, a fellow Floridian, had threatened to force a vote on expelling the congresswoman from the House.
After Friday’s development, several Democrats publicly called on Cherfilus-McCormick to either resign or be expelled.
“You can’t crime your way into legitimate power,” Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Wash., posted on X. “Since she was found guilty, she should resign or be removed.”
Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., did not answer when asked Friday if Cherilus-McCormick should remain in the House.
The Ethics Committee said it will hold a hearing after the House's two-week spring recess to determine any possible sanctions, which could include censure, removal from committees or expulsion.
There is recent precedent for expelling a member of Congress before the conclusion of their federal criminal case. In 2023, the House expelled then-Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., in a bipartisan 311-114 vote, making him the first House member in modern history to be expelled before a federal conviction.
The Justice Department indicted Cherfilus-McCormick in November on charges that she stole and laundered $5 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency funding. Her family’s health care company, Trinity Healthcare Services, had been working with FEMA through a Covid-19 vaccination contract, but then received a $5 million overpayment. The Justice Department alleged she and her brother never paid it back, routed it through multiple accounts and then used it to fund her successful 2022 special election campaign.
