On April 21, 2026, Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.) resigned, leaving Florida's 20th Congressional District vacant. 

Cherfilus-McCormick’s resignation came after the U.S. House of Representatives Ethics Committee announced on March 27 that it had determined that she violated the chamber’s campaign finance rules, finding that she had misappropriated disaster relief funds for campaign purposes. A hearing was scheduled for April 21 to discuss possible sanctions.

As of April 21, 2026, Republicans have a 217 to 213 majority in the U.S. House, with four vacancies. Additionally, Rep. Kevin Kiley (I-Calif.) is an independent who caucuses with Republicans.

Cherfilus-McCormick’s electoral history

In 2022, Cherfilus-McCormick ran for the U.S. House in Florida’s 20th Congressional District, after then-incumbent Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.) died. In the special general election, Cherfilus-McCormick defeated Jason Mariner (R) 79% to 19.4%. Cherfilus-McCormick won re-election in the 2022 regular general election by 44.6 percentage points. In the 2024 general election, she ran unopposed.

Vacancies in the 119th Congress

So far in the 119th Congress, there have been 12 in the U.S. House and four in the U.S. Senate. Of those vacancies:

• Three in the U.S. Senate were filled via appointment.
• One in the U.S. Senate was filled when Sen. Jim Justice (R-W.Va.) was sworn into office 11 days after the start of the 119th Congress. Justice delayed his swearing-in in order to fulfill the remainder of his term as governor of West Virginia.
• Eight in the U.S. House were filled after special election winners were sworn in.

As of April 21, 2026, the vacancies in Florida's 20th Congressional District, California's 1st Congressional District, California's 14th Congressional District, and Texas' 23rd Congressional District have not been filled.

Of the 16 vacancies, the longest was in Texas' 18th Congressional District, which became vacant on March 5, 2025, following the death of Rep. Sylvester Turner (D-Texas). The vacancy ended on Feb. 2, 2026, after 334 days.

Congressional vacancies since the 113th Congress

During the 113th through 118th Congresses, there were 88 vacancies in the U.S. House and 16 in the U.S. Senate. The average length of a vacancy in the U.S. Senate during that period was seven days. The average length of a vacancy in the U.S. House during that period was 138 days.

The longest vacancy in the U.S. Senate during that period was in New Jersey. The vacancy occurred during the 118th Congress, when Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) resigned on Aug. 20, 2024. Following Menendez's resignation, the seat was vacant for 20 days.

The longest vacancy in the U.S. House during that period was in Michigan's 13th Congressional District. The vacancy occurred during the 115th Congress, when Rep. John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) resigned on Dec. 5, 2017. Following Conyers' resignation, the seat was vacant for 359 days.