Sherrill Forces Out Lieutenant Governor After Harassment Findings

New Jersey Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell resigned Thursday after an independent investigation found he had engaged in "serious, repeated violations" of state ethics and harassment policy involving inappropriate conduct with women.

Gov. Mikie Sherrill announced the findings Friday and had given Caldwell an ultimatum to resign by the end of the day, working to sever ties with her own second in command just months into her term. "The investigation found that the Lieutenant Governor engaged in serious, repeated violations of state policy and failed to uphold the responsibilities of his office," Sherrill wrote on X.

Caldwell had served less than a year in office. Beyond the lieutenant governor's post, he also held the title of New Jersey secretary of state, giving him oversight of the state's elections at the time the investigation into his conduct was underway.

State Republicans had spent weeks hammering the administration over the investigation before Caldwell's exit. State Sen. Kristin Corrado had publicly questioned Sherrill's judgment for letting Caldwell serve as acting governor during her absences even while the probe into his conduct was underway, a criticism GOP officials repeated throughout the affair.

Under New Jersey law, lieutenant governors can be impeached and removed by the legislature, but Caldwell's resignation heads that process off entirely. The bigger complication for Sherrill's young administration is that Caldwell's office doubled as the state's top elections authority, a detail Republicans are unlikely to let voters forget as New Jersey heads toward another statewide contest.

Sherrill has not yet named a replacement for the secretary of state's post, leaving the question of who will oversee the state's elections unresolved for now.