Another member of Congress has been indicted on federal charges, and this time, the news is shocking the Democratic party. Fla. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick is now facing up to 53 years in prison for a fraud scheme that allegedly involved the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
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On Wednesday (Nov. 19), the Justice Department announced serious charges against Cherfilus-McCormick. According to documents, the congresswoman and her brother, Edwin Cherfilus, worked on a staffing contract funded by FEMA for vaccinations in 2021. The partnership had ties to Cherfilus-McCormick’s family company, Trinity Healthcare Services. And according to the indictment, the company was also the perfect cover for the siblings to allegedly steal $5 million in relief funds.
Prosecutors claimed a “substantial portion” of the funds were then distributed to many of her friends and relatives, who in turn donated to her Congressional election campaign in 2022. Cherfilus-McCormick won the special election, filling a vacant Democratic seat. She then won the majority of the vote– 72.3 percent to be exact– in the general election. In 2024, she was re-elected after running uncontested. Cherfilus-McCormick is up for reelection next year.
Surely, the latest indictment has injured the congresswoman’s current campaign. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries announced on Thursday (Nov. 20) that Cherfilus-McCormick has resigned from her leadership position on a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee “while the matter is ongoing,” according to POLITICO. Any and every indicted lawmaker is required to step down from leadership positions, according to the Democratic Caucus rules.
The representative spoke out amid the charges against her. “This is an unjust, baseless, sham indictment — and I am innocent. The timing alone is curious and clearly meant to distract from far more pressing national issues,” Cherfilus-McCormick said in a statement. “I look forward to my day in court. Until then, I will continue fighting for my constituents.”
Republicans on the other side of the aisle are calling for the congresswoman to officially resign. Fla. Rep. Greg Steube warned that if Cherfilus-McCormick doesn’t resign, he will bring a resolution to expel her. “Defrauding the federal government and disaster victims of $5 million is an automatic disqualifier from serving in elected office,” the Republican wrote on X.
The last member of Congress to be expelled was N.Y. Rep. George Santos after he was sentenced to seven years in prison. President Donald Trump commuted his sentence last month.
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