Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (Credit: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
House lawmakers just took a major step toward booting a sitting Democrat from Congress.
A bipartisan ethics panel voted to move forward with a process that could ultimately expel Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, who’s accused of funneling millions in disaster relief money into her campaign. The panel found Cherfilus-McCormick guilty on 25 counts.
An investigative subcommittee signed off on a motion for summary judgment, essentially concluding she committed nearly all the violations outlined earlier this year.
The decision followed a rare public ethics hearing Thursday — the first of its kind since 2010 — that stretched more than six hours. Lawmakers from both parties pressed her legal team as the eight-member panel, led by Rep. Michael Guest, weighed the case.
“After careful deliberation that lasted until well past midnight, the adjudicatory subcommittee found that Counts 1-15 and 17-26 of the SAV [statement of alleged violations] had been proven,” committee leaders said in a statement.
The allegations are sweeping. Investigators say Cherfilus-McCormick improperly used funds tied to disaster relief, filed false financial disclosures, and sought “special favors” tied to earmark requests. She’s also facing a separate federal indictment.
The panel will reconvene after the Easter recess to recommend punishment, with expulsion on the table.
Rep. Greg Steube has already pledged to push an expulsion vote regardless of what the committee decides. That would require a two-thirds majority in the House, meaning Democrats would have to cross the aisle.
So far, party leadership has largely stuck by Cherfilus-McCormick. But cracks are beginning to show.
“The allegations before us are extremely serious,” Rep. Mark DeSaulnier said at the start of Thursday’s hearing. “They not only concern an individual member’s conduct, they also implicate the public’s confidence in the House’s integrity as an institution.” (Read more: Trending Politics, 3/27/2026) (Archive)