Sherrill will name Shirley Emehelu as next Lt. Governor

Key Points:

• Gov. Mikie Sherrill will appoint Shirley U. Emehelu, a former federal and state prosecutor and longtime friend, as New Jersey’s fifth lieutenant governor, succeeding Rev. Dale Caldwell who resigned amid sexual harassment allegations.
• Emehelu, a Montclair resident and former acting state comptroller and acting secretary of State, will be the first woman to serve as lieutenant governor alongside a female governor in New Jersey, making it the fifth state with women in both top executive roles.
• Emehelu has a distinguished legal career including roles as an Assistant U.S. Attorney prosecuting financial crimes and public corruption, and experience at prestigious law firms; she emigrated from Nigeria at age three and holds degrees from Yale University and Yale Law School.
• The appointment does not require Senate confirmation and places Emehelu next in line of succession, with Gov. Sherrill considered to have national political ambitions; a new state comptroller nomination by Sherrill is anticipated.
• Sherrill had considered several finalists for lieutenant governor, including Assemblywoman Verlina Reynolds-Jackson and former Associate White House Counsel Justin Dews, before selecting Emehelu.