A House investigative panel delivered a damning verdict Thursday on Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick: substantial evidence shows the Florida Democrat broke federal law by stealing $5 million in COVID disaster funds to finance her 2021 congressional campaign.
The 59-page Ethics Committee report comes two months after federal prosecutors indicted the South Florida lawmaker on 15 criminal counts. Investigators reviewed 33,000 documents, interviewed 28 witnesses, and issued 59 subpoenas. What they found went beyond the original indictment.
Cherfilus-McCormick invoked her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination after initially cooperating with the probe.
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The Federal Charges
Prosecutors charged Cherfilus-McCormick in November 2025 with theft of government funds, money laundering, straw donor contributions, and filing false tax returns. She faces up to 53 years in prison if convicted.
The indictment centers on Trinity Healthcare Services, the Miramar-based company her family owned. Trinity held a state contract funded by FEMA to register people for COVID-19 vaccinations in minority communities.
In July 2021, her brother Edwin Cherfilus submitted an invoice requesting $50,578.50 for completed work. The Florida Division of Emergency Management made a clerical error. They deposited $5,057,850 instead.
Federal prosecutors say the siblings never returned the money.
Following the Money
According to the indictment, Cherfilus-McCormick and her brother moved quickly after receiving the windfall. Within weeks, $2.4 million flowed into SCM Consulting Group, a company she had registered with the state.
Prosecutors allege she then orchestrated a straw donor scheme. Money went to friends and relatives, who turned around and contributed to her congressional campaign. Federal law prohibits using intermediaries to disguise the true source of campaign donations.
Where the money went:
- $100,000 on a 3-carat yellow diamond ring from Tiffany’s (the ring appears in her official congressional portrait)
- A Tesla vehicle
- Designer clothing purchases
- Luxury hotel stays and cruise bookings
- Direct transfers to family members
The House Ethics report revealed her brother’s company, EC Firm, received $800,844 from Trinity. Her sister’s company, MC Nursing, got $74,000. Investigators found no evidence either company performed work under the state contract.
More than half of Trinity’s FEMA payments ended up with Cherfilus-McCormick or her relatives, according to the report.
What Investigators Uncovered
Bank records painted a detailed picture of alleged campaign finance violations. The Ethics Committee found $275,000 in campaign expenditures that were never reported to the Federal Election Commission. Her campaign misreported disbursements nearly 170 times.
Text messages from June 2021 caught investigators’ attention. Discussing a $2 million campaign loan, Cherfilus-McCormick wrote: “I am not planning on using that amount just leveraging.”
A senior advisor responded: “Indeed. But nobody has to know that.”
Her income tells the story. The Office of Congressional Ethics reported her 2021 earnings jumped more than $6 million compared to 2020. Nearly $5.75 million came from consulting and profit-sharing fees paid by Trinity Healthcare Services.
Investigators also questioned transactions between her husband’s law firm and her campaign. Bank records show the law firm gave her $50,000 on the last day of a quarterly reporting period. She transferred the money to her campaign account the same day. One month later, she paid her husband back $50,000, depositing it into a different account for his law firm. Neither transaction was reported to campaign finance regulators.
An Unlikely Path to Congress
Cherfilus-McCormick had tried twice before to win Florida’s 20th District seat. She challenged longtime Rep. Alcee Hastings in the 2018 Democratic primary and lost 73.6% to 26.4%. She tried again in 2020 and lost 69.3% to 30.7%.
When Hastings died in April 2021, she made a third attempt. This time she had money. She loaned her campaign $3.7 million.
The November 2, 2021 Democratic primary featured 11 candidates. After machine and hand recounts, Cherfilus-McCormick defeated Broward County Commissioner Dale Holness by exactly five votes. She won the January 11, 2022 special election with 79% and became the first Haitian Democratic member of Congress.
The sudden influx of campaign cash raised immediate questions. In her previous two campaigns combined, she had raised just $109,380. For the special election, she raised more than $6.7 million.
Her Defense Strategy
Cherfilus-McCormick maintains she did nothing wrong. After the indictment, she called the charges “an unjust, baseless, sham indictment” and said the timing was “clearly meant to distract from far more pressing national issues.”
Following Thursday’s Ethics report, she said she was denied “a fair opportunity to rebut or defend myself due to the constraints of an ongoing legal process.”
Her attorney, David Oscar Markus, characterized the case as involving “mistakes that generally aren’t even misdemeanors, let alone felonies.” He suggested political motivation behind the prosecution.
She continues representing Florida’s 20th District, which covers heavily Democratic areas in Broward and Palm Beach counties. She stepped down as ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa after the indictment. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said she deserves “her day in court and the presumption of innocence.”
Court Dates Ahead
Cherfilus-McCormick surrendered to federal authorities on November 25, 2025. A judge released her on $60,000 bond with travel restrictions to Florida, Washington D.C., Maryland, and Virginia’s Eastern District. She surrendered her personal passport but kept her congressional passport for official duties.
Her arraignment has been delayed twice. It’s now scheduled for February 3, 2026 in Miami federal court.
The House Ethics Committee will hold an adjudicatory hearing on March 5, 2026.
She also faces a political challenge. Activist Elijah Manley is running against her in the August 2026 Democratic primary and has raised more money than her so far. She sued Manley for $1 million last September for defamation after he referenced the federal investigation in campaign materials. A court dismissed the lawsuit in January.
What Happens Next
Federal prosecutors have built their case methodically. The charges carry serious time. Theft of government funds, money laundering, and straw donor violations each carry potential prison sentences. Stack them together, and she’s looking at decades behind bars.
The Ethics Committee’s findings give prosecutors additional ammunition. The committee concluded there is “substantial reason to believe” she violated federal laws, House rules, and ethical standards.
Two co-defendants face charges alongside her: Nadege LeBlanc, identified as her campaign manager and district office chief of staff, and David Kofi Spencer, her tax preparer. Her brother Edwin was also indicted.
The case against the congresswoman from Florida’s 20th District has become one of the most serious congressional corruption investigations in recent state history. Whether the evidence leads to conviction depends on what a Miami jury ultimately decides.
