A growing number of lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are calling on a handful of their colleagues to resign from their offices immediately or face expulsion due to alleged ethics violations and possible criminal charges they face.
Two House members, one Democrat and one Republican, announced on Monday they would retire from their offices before their term is expired after facing allegations of sexual misconduct. The pair faced bipartisan pressure to either step down or face expulsions.
Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., was the first to announce he would resign from Congress, just one day after he suspended his gubernatorial campaign in California amid allegations of sexual misconduct from a former staffer and other women.
The pressure on Swalwell quickly expanded to other lawmakers who face ethics violations, resulting in a growing list of members who could face their own removal.
One of which, GOP Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas, announced he would also retire from office just hours after Swalwell’s decision.
It’s not yet clear when the two will vacate their seats as dates have not been finalized. But they are likely to be swift exits.
Under House rules, a vote to expel someone from office requires a two-thirds majority — making it extremely rare, as it has only been done successfully six times in history. The most recent member to be removed was former New York Rep. George Santos, who was indicted in 2023 over accusations he had misled donors by lying about his personal and professional resume and that he had used campaign funds for personal purchases.
Other members facing calls for their removal include Florida Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, who faces fraud charges, and Florida Republican Rep. Cory Mills, who is under investigation for sexual misconduct and possible violence.
It’s not yet clear how House leadership will handle the proposed expulsions. Rank-and-file members could introduce the resolutions this week, with a vote as early as Wednesday.
But leadership could push to delay a vote until the accusations are thoroughly investigated by the House Ethics Committee. The bipartisan panel has already opened investigations into Swalwell, Gonzales, and Mills while Cherfilus-McCormick was found guilty on more than two dozen accusations levied against her.
Cherfilus-McCormick will face a hearing next week to determine sanctions.
Here are the pending ethics investigations against the lawmakers and why their colleagues are calling for their removal.
Eric Swalwell
Reports came out against Swalwell late last week revealing allegations of sexual assault and misconduct, prompting several Democrats to rescind their endorsements and his eventual withdrawal from the California governor’s race.
Swalwell later announced he would resign from the House, but not before lawmakers threatened to have him ousted.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., came out to say she would lead a resolution to expel Swalwell, noting she would support efforts to remove all four of the lawmakers if needed.
“I don’t care what the party affiliation is, if they are corrupt and engaging in illegal activity in Congress I’m going to vote to expel them,” Luna said in a post on X. “It is time Congress has a good house cleaning.”
Swalwell in a social media post apologized for his “mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past” while also denying the allegations. House Democratic leadership had called on him to suspend his campaign, although top party members have not commented on a possible expulsion vote.
The House Ethics Committee announced on Monday it opened an investigation “with respect to allegations that he may have engaged in sexual misconduct, including towards an employee working under his supervision.” That inquiry is likely to close now that he has said he will resign.
Tony Gonzales
Gonzales similarly faces charges of sexual misconduct toward a staffer, which has been under investigation by the House Ethics Committee since earlier this year.
The San Antonio Express-News reported in February that Gonzales allegedly had an affair with one of his staffers, who later died by suicide. During that affair, the Texas Republican had reportedly pressured the aide to send explicit photos.
It was later reported in April that he had been inappropriate with another campaign staffer, who provided text messages detailing their interactions.
Gonzales confessed to the initial allegations of an affair and suspended his reelection bid in March. However, it wasn’t until Monday that the Texas Republican said he would leave office early.
Democrats have pushed for months to expel Gonzales, and some said they would continue that pressure if he decides not to leave office immediately. Gonzales is expected to announce an effective date on Tuesday.
“As I’ve said, Gonzales and Swalwell are not fit to serve in Congress given their sexual transgressions against women who work for them. They should resign or be expelled,” Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández, D-N.M., said in a statement. “There’s already been a resolution announced to expel Swalwell that I will support. I will introduce a resolution to expel Rep. Gonzales.”
Gonzales has been under investigation by the House Ethics Committee since early March.
Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick
Cherfilus-McCormick has been under review by the Ethics Committee for a number of allegations, such as violating campaign finance laws; failing to properly disclose required information; accepting official work from an unemployed individual; engaging in improper conduct in relation to project funding requests; and misusing official funds for campaign purposes.
The panel announced last month she had been found guilty on more than two dozen of the accusations under review. She faces a hearing next week to determine what, if any, punishment she’ll face.
The two-term congresswoman was also federally indicted late last year over allegations she illegally stole $5 million in FEMA overpayments from her company and transferred it to her congressional campaign account. If convicted, she could spend up to 53 years in prison, according to the Justice Department.
The indictment alleges that Cherfilus-McCormick’s family health care company received the overpayment in 2021 through a FEMA-funded COVID-19 vaccination staffing contract. She and her brother then took that money and routed it through multiple accounts to “disguise its source” before depositing it to her campaign, the indictment states.
Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., has already filed a resolution to expel Cherfilus-McCormick from Congress, but has said he won’t force a vote on the measure until the committee releases its full report and recommendations. It’s not yet clear if he’ll push for that vote this week if other resolutions are put on the floor.
Cory Mills
Mills has been under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for nearly five months after the panel launched an inquiry in November.
The panel is tasked with investigating six charges against the Florida Republican, including whether he violated campaign finance laws; improperly solicited or received gifts; received special favors “by virtue of his position” in Congress; engaged in sexual misconduct and/or dating violence; or misused congressional resources, among other things.
Mills faced accusations last year from an ex-girlfriend that he had threatened to release explicit videos of her after their relationship had ended, according to police reports made to the Columbia County Sheriff’s Department. Mills denied the allegations and said at the time he was unaware of the police report.
A judge later approved a restraining order against Mills in October that was requested by the former girlfriend.
What’s next
It’s not yet clear how the expulsion resolutions will be handled. However, it’s likely that leadership could introduce motions to delay votes until the Ethics Committee finishes all of its investigations.
It could take months for those inquiries to be finished. It only takes a simple majority to table an expulsion resolution.
This story has been updated.

