WASHINGTON — House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) called Thursday for the expulsion of Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.), citing what he described as “indisputable” evidence that the congresswoman misused more than $5 million in federal disaster relief funds.
The Florida Democrat is scheduled to face a full sanctions hearing before the House Ethics Committee on April 21. The panel is expected to consider recommendations that could include her removal from Congress following a federal investigation into her family’s business dealings.
Prosecutors allege that Cherfilus-McCormick’s family firm received substantial overpayments on a COVID-19-related federal contract. Those funds were then allegedly laundered and used to finance her 2021 congressional campaign, purchase luxury jewelry, and buy a Tesla, according to court documents. Cherfilus-McCormick has pleaded not guilty and strongly denies any wrongdoing.
The case has triggered rare bipartisan calls for action. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) publicly urged Cherfilus-McCormick to resign or face expulsion, while Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) stated she would support removal if the congresswoman refuses to step down voluntarily.
“These facts are indisputable,” Johnson said in a statement Thursday morning. “The American people deserve representatives who uphold the highest standards of integrity, especially when taxpayer dollars are involved.”
Expulsion from the House requires a two-thirds majority vote — a drastic and infrequent step. Only 25 members have been expelled in the chamber’s 237-year history, most for treason or corruption during the Civil War era.
Cherfilus-McCormick, who represents Florida’s 20th Congressional District, has not issued a public response to Johnson’s call for expulsion as of Thursday morning. Her office declined to comment beyond reiterating her not-guilty plea and commitment to cooperating with the Ethics Committee process.
The April 21 hearing marks the next critical milestone in what has become one of the most closely watched ethics cases in the current Congress. A recommendation for expulsion by the Ethics Committee would set the stage for a full House vote — an outcome that, if successful, would make Cherfilus-McCormick only the sixth member expelled since the Civil War for reasons other than supporting the Confederacy.
