Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick

Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (/ˈʃɜːrfɪləs/ SHUR-fill-əss; born January 25, 1979)[1] is an American businesswoman and politician serving as the U.S representative for Florida's 20th congressional district. A member of the Democratic Party, she won a special election in 2022 to fill the seat left vacant after the death of Alcee Hastings.[2]

Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Florida's 20th district
Assumed office
January 18, 2022
Preceded byAlcee Hastings
Personal details
Born
Sheila Cherfilus

(1979-01-25) January 25, 1979
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Corlie McCormick
​
(m. 2017)​
Children2
EducationHoward University (BA)
St. Thomas University (JD)
WebsiteHouse website

Early life and career

Cherfilus-McCormick was born in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, to parents from Haiti and raised in the borough of Queens. She moved to Florida at 13 to attend high school.[3] She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and government from Howard University and a Juris Doctor from the St. Thomas University School of Law.[4]

After graduating from college, Cherfilus-McCormick served as a project manager for the New York City Transit Authority. From 1999 to 2007, she worked as the vice president for operations of Trinity Health Care Services, a Florida-based family home health care company co-founded by her stepfather, Gabriel Smith. She later served as CEO.[5]

U.S. House of Representatives

2018

Cherfilus-McCormick ran for Florida's 20th congressional district in the August 28 Democratic primary against incumbent Alcee Hastings in 2018.[6] She lost, 73.6%–26.4%.[7]

2020

Cherfilus-McCormick challenged Hastings again in 2020. She noted various ethics concerns facing Hastings and his health as reasons for running.[4] She lost the August 18 primary, 69.3%–30.7%.[8]

2022 special
See also: 2022 Florida's 20th congressional district special election

After Hastings died on April 6, 2021, Cherfilus-McCormick ran again in the 20th district in the 2022 special election.[9][10][11] During the campaign, she loaned $3.7 million to her campaign organization.[12][13] She campaigned on progressive policies such as a Green New Deal, Medicare for All, and a $1,000-a-month universal basic income.[3] Her campaign was supported by Brand New Congress, a progressive organization that also backed candidates such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rashida Tlaib.[14]

After a recount, Cherfilus-McCormick was declared the winner of the Democratic primary by five votes over Broward County Commissioner Dale Holness in an upset. She easily defeated Republican Jason Mariner in the January 11, 2022, general election.[15][16] She is the only Haitian-American Democrat ever elected to Congress and only the second overall, after Republican Mia Love of Utah.[17]

2022 regular election

Following her narrow margin of victory in the special election, Cherfilus-McCormick was again challenged by Holness for the regular election.[18] Cherfilus-McCormick handily defeated Holness in the August Democratic primary, 66%-27% with another 6% going to Anika Omphroy.[19] Cherfilus-McCormick defeated Republican nominee Drew Montez-Clark with 72% of the vote during the November election, and she started her first full term in Congress on January 3, 2023.

Committee assignments

For the 118th Congress:[20]

Caucus memberships

Personal life

Cherfilus-McCormick married lawyer Corlie McCormick in 2017 and lives in Miramar, Florida.[4]

Cherfilus-McCormick is Protestant.[25][26]

Electoral history
2018
2018 Florida's 20th congressional district Democratic primary results[27]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Alcee Hastings (incumbent) 52,628 73.8
Democratic Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick 18,697 26.2
Total votes 71,325 100
2020
2020 Florida's 20th congressional district Democratic primary results[28]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Alcee Hastings (incumbent) 62,759 69.3
Democratic Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick 27,831 30.7
Total votes 90,590 100
2022 (special)
2022 Florida's 20th congressional district special Democratic primary results[29][30]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick 11,662 23.8
Democratic Dale Holness 11,657 23.8
Democratic Barbara Sharief 8,680 17.7
Democratic Perry E. Thurston Jr. 7,282 14.8
Democratic Bobby DuBose 3,458 7.1
Democratic Omari Hardy 2,902 5.9
Democratic Priscilla Taylor 1,677 3.4
Democratic Elvin Dowling 646 1.3
Democratic Emmanuel Morel 454 0.9
Democratic Phil Jackson 342 0.7
Democratic Imran Siddiqui 316 0.6
Total votes 49,074 100
2022 Florida's 20th congressional district special election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick 44,707 79.0
Republican Jason Mariner 10,966 19.4
Libertarian Mike ter Maat 395 0.7
Independent Jim Flynn 265 0.5
Independent Lenny Serratore 262 0.5
Total votes 56,595 100

2022
2022 Florida's 20th congressional district Democratic primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (incumbent) 47,601 65.6
Democratic Dale Holness 20,783 28.6
Democratic Anika Omphroy 4,197 5.8
Total votes 72,581 100
2022 Florida's 20th congressional district election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (incumbent) 136,215 72.3
Republican Drew Montez Clark 52,151 27.6
Total votes 188,366 100

See also

References
  1. "Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick's Biography". Vote Smart. Retrieved November 6, 2021.
  2. Weigel, David (January 11, 2022). "Democrat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick wins House seat in Florida special election". The Washington Post. Democrat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick won Tuesday's election to fill Florida's vacant 20th Congressional District, returning her party to the 222-seat majority it held after the 2020 elections.
  3. Kassel, Matthew (October 20, 2021). "Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick hopes the third time's a charm in FL20". Jewish Insider. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  4. Washington, Wayne (August 6, 2020). "Lawyer makes second run at long-time incumbent Hastings". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  5. Knowles, Tiffani (November 30, 2021). "Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick preps to lead in D.C." Miami Times Online. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
  6. "Haitian-American Woman Looks to Unseat Hastings in Florida Primary". The Haitian Times. August 23, 2018. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  7. Almukhtar, Sarah; et al. (August 30, 2018). "Florida Primary Election Results". The New York Times. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  8. "Florida Primary Election Results 2020". NPR. May 1, 2020. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  9. Putney, Michael (October 29, 2021). "She's running for Congress, but are her ads misleading?". WPLG. Retrieved November 3, 2021.
  10. "Wealthy candidate pumps staggering $2.3 million of her own money into Florida special election". www.yahoo.com. August 2021. Retrieved November 3, 2021.
  11. Fineout, Gary (November 2021). "'Powerball politics': Democrats worry DeSantis is unbeatable". Politico. Retrieved November 3, 2021.
  12. Morse, Hannah. ""They Deserve to Be Safe": Candidates Call on Florida to Investigate the Health Effects of Sugar Cane Burning". ProPublica. Retrieved November 6, 2021.
  13. "Health CEO leads after recount in Florida congressional race". AP News. November 13, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  14. LeBlancJune 11, Rhonda Veerasawmy; Pm, 2021 at 3:03 (June 11, 2021). "Brand New Congress endorses Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick in CD 20 Special Election". Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government. Retrieved November 22, 2021.
  15. Kihara, David (November 12, 2021). "Cherfilus-McCormick apparent winner in Florida Democratic primary for Hastings' seat". Politico PRO. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  16. Steve Contorno (November 13, 2021). "Businesswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick is apparent winner of Florida primary for late Alcee Hastings' seat". CNN. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  17. Rivero, Daniel; Brutus, Wilkine; Switalski Muñnoz, Caitie (November 3, 2021). "South Florida could soon have its first Haitian or Jamaican-American Congress member. But first, a recount". WLRN-FM. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  18. "Holness launches campaign to oust Cherfilus-McCormick in congressional rematch". Sun Sentinel. March 26, 2022. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  19. "Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick wins Democratic nomination for Congress". WPTV News Channel 5 West Palm. August 23, 2022. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  20. "Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick". Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  21. Lowry, Bryan (January 19, 2022). "Cherfilus-McCormick, first Haitian American from Florida, officially joins Congress". WLRN. Retrieved January 20, 2022.
  22. "CAUCUS MEMBERS". April 14, 2022. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  23. "CONGRESSIONAL LGBTQ+ EQUALITY CAUCUS MEMBERS". July 17, 2022. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  24. Ogles, Jacob (July 11, 2022). "Florida LGBTQ caucus lineup includes Charlie Crist, Val Demings, Nikki Fried". Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  25. "Religious affiliation of members of 118th Congress" (PDF). Pew Research Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 16, 2023.
  26. "Faith on the Hill: The religious composition of the 118th Congress". Pew Research Center. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  27. "August 28, 2018 Primary Election Official Results". Florida Secretary of State. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  28. "August 18, 2020 Primary Election Official Results". Florida Secretary of State. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  29. "2021 Florida Special Primary Election Results: 20th Congressional District". NBC News. November 3, 2021.
  30. Greenwood, Max (November 16, 2021). "Florida officials certify 5-vote victory in primary for Alcee Hastings' seat". The Hill. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
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