Democratic lawmaker Himes calls for indicted colleague Cherfilus-McCormick to resign

NEW YORK, March 29 (Reuters) – U.S. Representative Jim Himes on Sunday joined some members of his party in calling for fellow Democratic Representative Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick to step down now that a congressional panel has found she violated ethics rules.

“If she doesn’t resign, there will be a vote in the House. … I would hope that my colleague might avoid that outcome by choosing to resign,” Himes said on CBS’ “Face the Nation” program. 

A subcommittee found that 25 counts of alleged violations by Cherfilus-McCormick had been proven “by clear and convincing evidence,” Representative Michael Guest, a Mississippi Republican who chairs the House of Representatives Ethics Committee, said in a statement on Friday. A federal grand jury indicted her in November on charges of stealing relief funds the federal government offered during the COVID-19 pandemic, and directing that money to her own 2021 congressional campaign.

Cherfilus-McCormick’s office did not immediately return a request for comment. She has previously denied wrongdoing.

The full Ethics Committee will decide on what sanctions to recommend after the House returns from its April recess, Guest said. 

The November indictment accused Cherfilus-McCormick, a Florida Democrat, and others of conspiring to steal an overpayment of $5 million received by her family-owned healthcare company and routing the money through multiple accounts to disguise its source. 

The company had a COVID-19 vaccination staffing contract funded by the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Justice Department said. 

Republicans and some Democrats, such as Representative Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, have called on Cherfilus-McCormick to resign. Although Himes favors her resignation, he added that some people would find a reason to support her for now. 

Himes cited the case of former Representative George Santos, a New York Republican who was expelled from Congress and jailed on charges of fraud and identity theft before President Donald Trump ordered his release last year.

“It is also very important that both parties be consistent in punishing ethical lapses inside their own teams,” Himes said.

(Reporting by Isla Binnie; Editing by Sergio Non and Jonathan Oatis)