TRENTON, N.J. – New Jersey has a new governor, a new lieutenant governor and, less than a year into the administration, another controversy involving allegations about the treatment of women and questions over how long people close to the governor knew about them.
Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell is the subject of an outside investigation into allegations of inappropriate behavior toward women and possible ethics violations, including purported offers of state jobs. Caldwell has denied wrongdoing.
For Assemblywoman Dawn Fantasia, the story sounds familiar. The Republican lawmaker says the investigation surrounding Caldwell is beginning to resemble the political damage that followed the Albert Alvarez scandal during former Gov. Phil Murphy’s first year in office — not because the allegations are the same, but because questions about timelines and disclosure are again moving to the center of a New Jersey governor’s office.
Caldwell Investigation Was Underway Before New Jersey Knew About It
The public learned about the Caldwell investigation last week, but the inquiry did not begin last week.
Former New Jersey Attorney General Christopher Porrino is leading the outside investigation. Caldwell met with Porrino roughly two months before news of the inquiry became public, and reporting on the case places its beginnings in late spring.
Shore News Network previously reported on the investigation into Caldwell over alleged conduct involving women and possible ethics violations.
Another account pushed the timeline farther back. A former Centenary University employee reportedly attempted months ago to bring concerns about Caldwell to someone associated with Sherrill’s 2025 campaign.
State Sen. Declan O’Scanlon later seized on that episode, questioning whether people around Sherrill had been exposed to concerns about Caldwell before the administration took office. Shore News Network reported on O’Scanlon’s demand for answers about the attempted whistleblower contact.
Fantasia is now asking the question that often becomes more damaging in Trenton than the original allegation: who knew what, and when?
“According to the reports, the investigation has been going on for at least two months,” Fantasia said in her latest episode of The Rundown. “That’s when Caldwell first met with former Attorney General Chris Porrino, who’s heading the investigation.”
“But some of the issues surrounding the lieutenant governor began at least five months ago,” she said. “The public found out last Friday.”
Caldwell has denied allegations of improper romantic or professional conduct. No finding that he violated state ethics rules or engaged in misconduct has been announced.
Fantasia Wants to Know Who Was Told What and Who Knows What
The investigation itself is only part of Fantasia’s complaint.
She wants the Sherrill administration to explain when senior officials learned about the allegations, whether legislative leaders were notified and who authorized the outside investigation.
“Was legislative leadership informed?” Fantasia asked. “If so, when? If not, why were they left to find out from the press?”
She also wants to know whether the eventual findings will be released publicly.
Gov. Mikie Sherrill has said complaints must be taken seriously and investigated while the rights of the person accused must also be protected. She has pledged to act quickly if the evidence warrants action.
Shore News Network previously examined Sherrill’s handling of the Caldwell investigation as details about the inquiry began emerging.
The administration has not announced disciplinary action against Caldwell.
He remains lieutenant governor and secretary of state.
Caldwell Served as Acting Governor During the Investigation
That last point has given Republicans another opening.
Caldwell served as acting governor when Sherrill traveled outside New Jersey, temporarily exercising gubernatorial authority while an investigation of his conduct was already underway.
Fantasia questioned why the administration allowed that to happen if the allegations warranted bringing in an outside law firm.
“The governor can’t claim these allegations are serious enough to trigger a formal investigation and then hand the powers of her office to the person being investigated,” Fantasia said.
Assemblyman Alex Sauickie has also questioned the arrangement.
There has been no finding that Caldwell was legally barred from serving as acting governor while under investigation. The criticism from Fantasia and Sauickie is a political and governmental accountability argument about Sherrill’s decision to leave Caldwell in that role.
Caldwell has continued performing his official duties throughout the inquiry.
The Alvarez Scandal Still Hangs Over Trenton
Fantasia’s comparison reaches back to the first year of the Murphy administration.
Katie Brennan accused Albert Alvarez, who had worked on Murphy’s gubernatorial campaign and later received a state government job, of sexually assaulting her after a 2017 campaign gathering.
Alvarez denied the allegation and was not criminally charged.
The scandal grew well beyond the underlying accusation as lawmakers investigated how Alvarez obtained and remained in a senior state position after transition officials became aware of the allegation.
Hearings exposed breakdowns in communication and produced conflicting accounts about who knew about Brennan’s allegation, when they learned of it and what happened afterward.
“New Jersey has been here before,” Fantasia said.
“During the Murphy administration, the Alvarez scandal, which involved serious allegations, was made significantly worse by an administration that chose silence over transparency,” she said. “Officials who claimed ignorance were later shown to have known far more than they let on. Timelines kept shifting.”
The Caldwell allegations are different and remain under investigation. Comparing the administration’s response does not make the accusations against Caldwell equivalent to the allegation Brennan made against Alvarez.
Fantasia’s comparison is about what happened around the allegations.
“We’re watching the same pattern develop,” she said.
That argument will ultimately depend on facts that have not yet been made public.
Porrino’s investigation could substantiate allegations against Caldwell, reject them or reach conclusions somewhere between those outcomes. Just as important politically will be whether New Jersey eventually receives a full accounting of when the administration learned about the complaints and how it responded.
“Governor Sherrill ran on competence and accountability,” Fantasia said. “This is a test of both.”
For now, Caldwell remains New Jersey’s lieutenant governor, the investigation remains unresolved and the administration has not released its findings.
That leaves Trenton waiting for the part of the story that settled the Murphy-era controversy only after months of hearings and testimony: the timeline.