House committee launches probe into Democratic lawmaker’s campaign finances

U.S. Representative Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, a Florida Democrat, is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee regarding possible campaign finance violations, according to a statement released by the panel on Wednesday.

The committee unanimously voted to form an investigative subcommittee that is probing whether Cherfilus-McCormick “may have violated campaign finance laws and regulations in connection with her 2022 special election and/or 2022 re-election campaigns; failed to properly disclose required information on statements required to be filed with the House; and/or accepted voluntary services for official work from an individual not employed in her congressional office,” according to the committee’s statement.

Cherfilus-McCormick, the first Haitian American Democrat elected to Congress, according to her website, took office in January 2022 after a special election was held to fill the Florida seat vacated by the late Democratic Representative Alcee Hastings. Cherfilus-McCormick was reelected to the House in January 2023 to serve a second term representing Florida’s 20th Congressional District.

Jonathan Levin, press secretary for Cherfilus-McCormick, told Newsweek in an email on Wednesday that the congresswoman “takes these matters seriously” but did not provide additional details about what sparked the probe.

“As the Ethics Committee said in its statement, the mere fact of establishing an investigative subcommittee does not itself indicate that any violation occurred,” Levin said. “Regardless, the Congresswoman takes these matters seriously and is working to resolve them.”

The ethics committee said in the online statement that the group decided to launch the probe into Cherfilus-McCormick after a referral from the Office of Congressional Ethics, an independent and nonpartisan agency that investigates misconduct complaints. The ethics committee notes that the mere fact of establishing an Investigative Subcommittee does not itself indicate that any violation has occurred.

Newsweek reached out via email on Wednesday to the Office of Congressional Ethics for comment on the investigation.

Representative Andrew Garbarino, a New York Republican, will chair the subcommittee, which is comprised of three other members: Representative Chrissy Houlahan, a Pennsylvania Democrat; Representative Cliff Bentz, an Oregon Republican; and Representative Troy A. Carter, a Louisiana Democrat, according to the statement. The four subcommittee members “shall have jurisdiction” to determine if Cherfilus-McCormick “violated the Code of Official Conduct” or any law, rule or regulation, according to the statement.

No additional details were available at the time of publication.