USA25 September, 20263 min read
Mikie Sherrill Demands Dale Caldwell Resign After Ethics Report Finds Harassment
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Caldwell resigned after an investigation found serious ethics violations and sexual harassment. Sherrill had urged Caldwell to resign and announced his resignation was accepted.
Caldwell Resigns in Trenton
New Jersey Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell resigned Friday after Gov. Mikie Sherrill demanded he step down over accusations of inappropriate behavior with women and ethics lapses.
Sherrill said she was committed to changing what she called a longstanding problem in state government, and she told reporters, "There has been a culture in Trenton, probably since the birth of our nation, to sweep this under the rug."
Sherrill said Caldwell had been given until Friday to bring an end to a scandal that threatened to be a drag on her fledgling administration, and she described the resignation as part of a broader effort to change how the administration handles misconduct.
Sherrill’s announcement came as Republicans hammered her over the investigation into Caldwell, who served as acting governor in her absence and oversaw elections as New Jersey’s secretary of state.
The investigation that drove the resignation was conducted by former New Jersey Attorney General Christopher Porrino, and it concluded Caldwell committed violations of state policy including a sexual comment to a staffer and ethics-rule issues involving ticketed events and a promotion attempt.
Report, Denials, and Dispute
Sherrill said the investigation found Caldwell committed "serious, repeated violations of state policy, including ethical lapses and a substantiated finding of sexual harassment," and she framed the decision as necessary to move forward with work serving New Jersey.
Caldwell’s counsel Thomas R. Calcagni said the process was unfair, and he argued, "We continue to forcefully challenge the report," while also saying Caldwell’s resignation did not diminish their outrage about the investigative process.
NBC News described investigators finding credible evidence in a 61-page report that Caldwell violated workplace policy by commenting to a female staffer that young women want "young sperm," and it also said the report found ethics-code violations tied to bringing guests to ticketed events without payment or reimbursement.
The Guardian reported that Sherrill said she could no longer tolerate a culture of silence, and she told reporters, "We can no longer tolerate the culture of silence, sweeping things under the rug or kicking cans down the road."
The dispute also played out against the backdrop of New Jersey’s rules, where a governor cannot fire a lieutenant governor because the post is independently elected, but the Legislature can impeach and remove the second-in-command.
Elections and Next Steps
Sherrill named acting Comptroller Shirley Emehelu as acting secretary of state, and she said the appointment was designed to ensure New Jerseyans have confidence in the officials overseeing elections. Sherrill said, "We are just 39 days away from the midterm elections," and she described it as "of paramount importance that our elections run smoothly." The Hill reported that with the lieutenant governor’s office now vacant, New Jersey’s succession rules put the state Senate president next in line to assume the governor’s duties when Sherrill is out of state or otherwise unable to serve.
The New York Times said Caldwell had been in the role for only eight months, and it reported that investigators concluded he tried to use his position to secure a promotion for a girlfriend and dates for himself. Sherrill also said she would make a permanent appointment within 45 days of the position becoming vacant, and she said she would ensure her administration followed the rules while it navigated a "little bit of a new area for New Jersey" on the interim process.