Florida Democrat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick has stepped down from her Congressional role amid accusations of misappropriating COVID relief funds.

The 46-year-old is alleged to have redirected millions from her family’s healthcare business, funds initially intended for pandemic relief, to bolster her political campaign.

In recent findings, the bipartisan House Ethics Committee concluded that Cherfilus-McCormick breached multiple House rules and ethics standards. Among these allegations is the misappropriation of over $5 million in taxpayer money, with claims that part of this sum went towards purchasing an extravagant diamond ring.

Facing an indictment by a federal grand jury in Miami as of November 2025, Cherfilus-McCormick is currently awaiting trial. She has denied the allegations, maintaining her innocence with a plea of not guilty.

Her resignation preempted a rare Congressional expulsion, as her peers were preparing to oust her due to the financial scandal.

This resignation is the latest in a series of unexpected departures from the House of Representatives in recent weeks.

Two other lawmakers – Tony Gonzales and Eric Swalwell – resigned from Congress last week amid pending their own ethics investigations. The men were facing scathing allegations of sexual misconduct. 

In a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson, the Florida Congresswoman announced her immediate resignation on Tuesday.

‘I hereby resign my office from the 119th Congress as Representative for Florida’s 20th Congressional District, effective Tuesday April 21, 2026; 1:30pm,’ Cherfilus-McCormick stated.

‘After careful reflection and prayer, I have concluded that it is in the best interest of my constituents and the institution that I step aside at this time,’ she added.

In a separate statement issued Tuesday, Cherfilus-McCormick claimed that the Ethics Committee did not follow a ‘fair process.’ 

Ex-Representative Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, was pictured with a large diamond ring on her hand in her official congressional  portrait

Cherfilus-McCormick’s resignation letter sent to Speaker Mike Johnson on April 21st, 2026

Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, sits alongside her lawyer during a hearing of the House Ethics Committee on Capitol Hill on March 26, 2026 in Washington, DC

The ethics panel stated that Cherfilus-McCormick committed 25 ethics violations,  noting at the time that it would recommend a punishment in the coming weeks. 

She resigned immediately before the committee was set to release their recommendations for punishment. 

Committee Chairman Michael Guest said, ‘In light of Ms. McCormick’s resignation earlier today, the Committee on Ethics has now lost jurisdiction on this matter,’ adding that ‘there will not be a sanctions hearing.’

The congresswoman, along with a handful of co-conspirators, is accused of steering money that came into a family health-care company she ran with her brother, Edwin Cherfilus, into her campaign coffers through ‘straw donations.’

The November indictment in Cherfilus–McCormick’s case accuses her of purchasing a 3.14–carat ‘Fancy Vivid Yellow Diamond’ ring from a New York jeweler for $109,000, per CBS12. 

Her official house portrait appears to show a similar piece of jewelry adorning her finger.

Cherfilus-McCormick, second right, is flanked by her husband Corlie McCormick, right, and her two children, as she speaks to the press and supporters at an election night party following a special election, Tuesday, Jan. 11, 2022, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Cherfilus-McCormick faces up to 53 years in prison if convicted.  

Between the rare public hearing, criminal allegations, and the control of Congress hanging in the balance as the resignation or expulsion of a Democrat could widen the narrow GOP majority, this ethics battle is noteworthy but not unprecedented.

The last member to be expelled from the chamber was ex-Congressman George Santos, who was sentenced to nearly seven years in prison for misleading donors and spending campaign money fraudulently. The 2023 vote against Santos was 311-114.

Santos had his sentence commuted by Trump after serving around three months in prison.