Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, a Florida Democrat, Resigns From Congress

U.S.|Florida Democrat Resigns From Congress Just as Panel Weighs Expelling Her

Representative Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, the Florida Democrat charged with embezzling $5 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency money, announced her resignation on Tuesday, just minutes before the House Ethics Committee had been set to vote on whether to recommend that the House expel her.

Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick, 47, was indicted in November on charges of stealing FEMA money and funneling some of it to her 2021 congressional campaign. The ethics panel had been investigating the matter for more than two years and on Tuesday had been preparing to recommend expelling her.

Instead, Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick announced she was resigning about 20 minutes before the panel was to vote, and when the committee convened, her resignation letter was read into the record before the session was abruptly adjourned.

She has denied any wrongdoing. If convicted, Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick could face up to 53 years in prison.

Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick, had been running for re-election, wrote on social media that the committee had refused to give her lawyers time to prepare her defense. She warned of punishing people “before due process is complete” and said that “we do not allow allegations alone to override the will of the people.”

Her resignation is part of a recent wave of congressional departures that began with Eric Swalwell, a Democrat from the San Francisco Bay Area, announcing last week that he would quit after allegations that he sexually assaulted a former staff member and engaged in misconduct with other women.

Representative Tony Gonzales, a Texas Republican accused of having a coercive sexual relationship with a staff member who later killed herself, also said last week that he would step down.

Pressure from lawmakers in both parties had been growing to expel Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick. She had been representing parts of southeast Florida in Congress since she won a special election in 2022.

The House Ethics Committee last month convened a rare public hearing into her conduct, despite her lawyer arguing that it would taint any criminal trial. The panel concluded that she had committed ethics violations related to funneling FEMA money to her campaign.