New Jersey’s lieutenant governor resigns under pressure from Sherrill, fellow Democrats

Por Joey Fox, Matt Friedman and Daniel Han — POLITICO – TOP Stories

TRENTON, New Jersey — New Jersey Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell has resigned just eight months into his term, following the release of an internal investigation that found he had engaged in ethics violations and made a sexually charged remark to a staffer.

Gov. Mikie Sherrill, who demanded that Caldwell step down when the report was released, announced at a Friday press conference that Caldwell had submitted his resignation that afternoon, and she had accepted it. She said the investigation’s findings showed Caldwell “failed to uphold the responsibilities of his office and he demonstrated a pattern of behavior that does not meet the standards of this administration.”

“We can no longer tolerate the culture of silence, sweeping things under the rug or kicking cans down the road,” Sherrill said. “New Jerseyans deserve fairness and they deserve accountability, and we will work every single day to earn your trust.”

Caldwell himself was not present at the event but said in a statement that he resigned because he didn’t want “this matter to distract from the important work of the administration or its responsibility to the people of New Jersey.” He added that he “strongly” disputes the report, that his resignation should not be interpreted as an admission of wrongdoing and that he will “continue to defend my name, my character and the truth.”

The choice of Caldwell’s replacement as lieutenant governor rests entirely with Sherrill, and whomever she picks will not be subject to confirmation by the state Senate. Sherrill said that she will move “swiftly and thoughtfully” to choose a new lieutenant governor within the next 45 days.

Under New Jersey law, lieutenant governors must also hold a Cabinet-level position; Caldwell served as New Jersey’s secretary of state, a critical role with the 2026 midterm elections well underway. Sherrill has named Shirley Emehelu, currently the acting state comptroller, as acting secretary of state, and said that a new acting comptroller will be announced shortly.

Caldwell had initially resisted Sherrill’s call for his resignation, insisting that he had done nothing wrong and saying the report made sweeping judgments based on scant evidence. His lawyer said in a statement on Thursday that the investigation had been “unnecessarily protracted and one-sided.”

Sherrill rebuffed that, calling the investigation “thorough” and “impartial” and saying that Caldwell had been given ample opportunity by investigators to defend his behavior.

Although Sherrill could not have unilaterally forced Caldwell out — doing so would have required impeachment proceedings, a laborious process involving a potentially reluctant state Legislature — he had few powerful allies in state political circles to defend him and faced a difficult path if he chose to stay in office. Within hours of the release of the investigation, Democratic Sens. Andy Kim and Cory Booker had both joined Sherrill in saying he should step down.

Caldwell’s swift collapse comes after a tumultuous few months for Sherrill, who has worked to build up a national profile after her landslide win last year. Over the summer, Sherrill disclosed that the state had accidentally allowed more than 6,000 noncitizens to register to vote in 2023 and 2024, long before she took office, turning New Jersey into a flashpoint in wider debates over voter fraud.

But Caldwell’s resignation, at least, means that Sherrill won’t have to navigate a protracted battle with her own lieutenant governor. It also means that she’ll be able to resume attending events and campaign stops outside New Jersey: she refrained from out-of-state travel in recent weeks to prevent Caldwell from becoming acting governor, though Caldwell had previously spent 18 days as acting governor while the probe was ongoing.

The investigation began in May in response to an anonymous complaint, but it wasn’t until Sept. 4 that the New Jersey Globe first reported on its existence. What followed was a three-week limbo in which Sherrill would not confirm or deny that Caldwell was under investigation, with even normally well-informed state power brokers left in the dark.

The report, released by Sherrill on Thursday, found that the lieutenant governor had made sexual remarks to subordinates, flirted with women at official functions, and attended events with unpaid guests in violation of state ethics policies. In one instance, the report stated, a staffer said the 66-year-old Caldwell had told her that women like herself were “looking for young sperm.”

According to the report, Caldwell also encouraged a state official to hire an individual without disclosing that it was his girlfriend, another violation of the ethics code. That incident took place on May 26, four days after Caldwell had been informed he was under investigation based on the anonymous complaint about his behavior.

A rebuttal from Caldwell’s attorney stated that the conclusions of the report “go further than the evidence supports,” and that in some cases conflicting testimony was not given due emphasis. The State Police trooper assigned to Caldwell’s security detail, for example, stated in several instances that he did not recall the incidents described in the report.

But Caldwell, a former university president and school board member who was not well-known until Sherrill chose him as her running mate, had little leverage to stave off his political downfall, and no prominent politicians leapt to his defense. Some Democrats who spoke with POLITICO after the report was released said that Caldwell’s behavior was not as damning as they had feared, but they were skeptical he could win a power struggle with the governor.

Caldwell is only the fourth person to serve as lieutenant governor, a position that was created in advance of the 2009 election. Prior to that year, the state Senate president took over as acting governor in the event of a gubernatorial vacancy, a system that led to substantial confusion after the resignations of Govs. Christine Todd Whitman and Jim McGreevey.

The office of lieutenant governor has been vacant once before: Sheila Oliver, who had won twice alongside Gov. Phil Murphy, died midway through her second term in August 2023. A month after Oliver’s death, Murphy named Tahesha Way, who was already serving as secretary of state, to replace her.

Fonte: POLITICO – TOP Stories