Florida congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick announced her resignation on Tuesday hours before her Democratic colleagues could vote to boot her from office.
The House Ethics Committee found Cherfilus-McCormick, 47, guilty of 25 ethics violations last month following accusations that the Florida lawmaker had siphoned millions of dollars in federal disaster relief funds to her 2021 congressional campaign.
Last November, the congresswoman was also indicted on federal charges by a Florida grand jury, which, if she is convicted, she will face up to 53 years in prison.
The House Ethics panel was set to announce sanctions against her on Tuesday afternoon. Florida GOP Rep. Greg Steube told NOTUS that he sought to file an expulsion resolution “as soon as ethics is done with their hearing.”
“She stole $5 million, she’s been indicted with 15 felonies. If she was found guilty of 25 different ethics violations, I think it’s incumbent on the House to expel her from the body,” Steube, 47, told the outlet. “I’m shocked that she hasn’t retired.”
However, the congresswoman announced her resignation before the House panel could decide her fate.
“This was not a fair process,” the congresswoman wrote in a statement shared to social media. “The Ethics Committee refused my new attorney’s reasonable request for time to prepare my defense. By going forward with this process while a criminal indictment is pending, the Committee prevented me from defending myself.”
“Rather than play these political games, I choose to step away so that I can devote my time to fighting for my neighbors in Florida’s 20th district,” she continued. “I hereby resign from the 119th Congress, effective immediately.”
“But let me say this plainly: we should be very careful about the precedent we are setting. In this country, we do not punish people before due process is complete. We do not allow allegations alone to override the will of the people. That is a dangerous path, and one that should concern every American, regardless of party.”
The Daily Beast reached out to Cherfilus-McCormick’s office for comment.
Cherfilus-McCormick has said she is not guilty of ethics violations and pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges.
Her departure marks the third congressional resignation in eight days, since both California Democrat Eric Swalwell and Texas Republican Tony Gonzales announced their exit from the House within 65 minutes of each other on April 13.
Cherfilus-McCormick said in a statement to NOTUS that her accusations were not in the same league as Swalwell’s or Gonzales’s, who face sexual misconduct allegations. Swalwell also faces accusations of sexual assault and rape.
“The allegations I am addressing are not the same as those facing some of my colleagues. Lumping them together, particularly with cases involving sexual assault and rape, is irresponsible,” she told the outlet.
