Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick was just minutes away from becoming just the seventh member ever to be expelled from the U-S House of Representatives when she resigned her seat yesterday. A bipartisan vote to expel was imminent after the House Ethics Committee found her guilty of 25 counts of funnelling Five Million Dollars of federal disaster relief into her campaign. She called the process unfair and a witch hunt, and waited until *literally* the last possible moment to give up.
I reached out to local LGBTQ+ Democratic leaders for their reaction. Kristen Browde, president of the Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus, told me quote “We are always disappointed when a politician engages in misconduct, no matter the party.”
Dolphin Democrats president Alfredo Olvera said the group “acknowledge[s] the resignation of Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick and recognize this as a significant moment for our community and for South Florida.”
Now the question becomes who will replace her, and when. Olvera said he says they don’t do that, and leave it up to Browde’s organization, and she didn’t address the topic.
Elijah Manley, who has appeared on this show many times, was already challenging Cherfilus-McCormick in the primary and said he will run in the Special. After the resignation, he made his case for the district, saying: “I was raised in Sistrunk by a single mother, many days in homelessness and poverty. I have spent years organizing alongside families in the district. Now the district deserves a special election to elect a representative who will fight for things working families actually need.”
Governor Ron DeSantis must call for the special election, and given the narrow partisan makeup, he’s expected to delay as long as possible, and Olvera told me he wouldn’t be surprised if the seat is open until November.
