Sometimes it’s best to leave before the party is over.

On Tuesday, Florida Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus‑McCormick announced her resignation from Congress, leaving office mere minutes before the House Ethics Committee was scheduled to vote on recommending her expulsion.

CNBC reports that the move came while Cherfilus‑McCormick faces a federal indictment alleging that she and her brother stole about $5 million in federal disaster funds and funneled some of it toward her first congressional campaign.

Federal prosecutors say the money came from an overpayment linked to Covid-19 disaster relief funds that were allocated to the health care company the Cherfilus‑McCormick family owns. 

Investigators allege those funds were then diverted for personal and political spending. This included luxury goods and her 2022 congressional campaign expenses. Cherfilus‑McCormick has consistently denied wrongdoing and says the case is politically motivated.

In a statement, the congresswoman called the Ethics Committee’s pending action “unfair and unjust,” arguing that she was being pushed out before the courts could fully weigh the allegations. 

“This was not a fair process. The Ethics Committee refused my new attorney’s reasonable request for time to prepare my defense,” her statement began. “By going forward with this process while a criminal indictment is pending, the Committee prevented me from defending myself. I will not stand by and pretend that this has been anything other than a witch hunt. I simply cannot stand by and allow my due process rights to be trampled on, and my good name to be tarnished.”

The committee, however, had already concluded that she was culpable in 25 of 27 counts tied to campaign‑finance and disclosure violations, including misleading financial reports and improper use of campaign funds.

“Rather than play these political games, I choose to step away so that I can devote my time to fighting for my neighbors in Florida’s 20th district. I hereby resign from the 119th Congress, effective immediately,” Cherfilus‑McCormick said.

The resignation blocks an expected expulsion vote and effectively ends her short congressional tenure, but not the legal process: she is scheduled to stand trial next year on the federal charges. 

Her departure also triggers a special‑election clock in Florida’s heavily Democratic 20th District, opening the door to a new candidate amid a crowded field of local Democrats eyeing the seat.

“[We] should be very careful about the precedent we are setting. In this country, we do not punish people before due process is complete. We do not allow allegations alone to override the will of the people. That is a dangerous path, and one that should concern every American, regardless of party,” she said.