CLC Alleges Cherfilus-McCormick Used Straw Donor Scheme to Funnel Illegal Money to Campaign

On April 20, 2026, Campaign Legal Center (CLC) filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) alleging that Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, through senior campaign advisors and agents, violated federal campaign finance laws by using an elaborate straw donor scheme to funnel hundreds of thousands of dollars in excessive, corporate and/or foreign money into her 2022 congressional campaign. Based on investigative findings recently released by the U.S. House Committee on Ethics, CLC’s complaint details how Petrogaz-Haiti — a Florida company that received all of its funding (over $12.5 million) from the government of Haiti — funneled over $725,000 in illegal contributions through two 501(c)(4) “dark money” corporations, Progressive People Inc. and Truth & Justice Inc., to illegally finance Cherfilus-McCormick’s campaign. CLC’s complaint also explains that because the straw donor scheme at issue was not part of the Justice Department’s criminal indictment of Cherilus-McCormick, and the House Ethics process can at most only expel her from Congress (without fining her or holding the other persons and entities involved accountable), it is imperative that the FEC take action to enforce the law.