BREAKING NEWS: Gov. Mikie Sherrill gave Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell until Friday to step down after an outside investigation substantiated sexual harassment and ethics violations.

TRENTON, N.J. — Just nine months into her first term, Gov. Mikie Sherrill is calling on the lieutenant governor she selected as her running mate to resign after a 61-page outside investigation found Rev. Dale Caldwell sexually harassed a staffer and repeatedly violated state ethics rules.

Republicans are saying Sherrill’s call is too little, too late, after finding out she and her administration covered up the scandal for months before it became public. It is a repeating pattern of silence and secrecy that draws similiarities to Sherrill’s handling of the non-citizen voting scandal.

“The investigation found that the Lieutenant Governor engaged in serious, repeated violations of state policy and failed to uphold the responsibilities of his office. I’m calling for his resignation and giving him until tomorrow to do so,” the governor said. “I hold everyone in my Administration to the highest ethical standard. We all have a duty to follow our state ethics and harassment policy and our Code of Conduct. Anyone who violates these will be held accountable.”

Until this week, few details were known, and Sherrill avoided the topic while in public.

Sherrill announced Thursday that Caldwell had until today to resign, saying the investigation concluded that he engaged in “serious, repeated violations of state policy” and failed to meet the responsibilities of his office.

The findings represent the most serious personnel crisis of Sherrill’s young administration and bring renewed scrutiny to how Caldwell was vetted before joining the Democratic ticket in 2025, as well as what Sherrill’s political operation knew about earlier concerns involving him. It also draws similarities to a rape scandal that plagued the Phil Murphy administration in its early days.

Report Substantiates Sexual Harassment Finding

It turns out Caldwell has been using his office as Lt. Governor as a real life dating app and in his first eight months, he was spending a lot of time trying to hook up with people close to the government.

The investigation was conducted by Lowenstein Sandler LLP after Sherrill administration Chief Ethics Officer Christina Fullam received an anonymous complaint May 14.

According to the full investigative report, Caldwell was formally notified of the investigation May 22. The report substantiated a violation of New Jersey’s workplace discrimination policy and concluded that Caldwell sexually harassed a female staffer. It wasn’t until September that Sherrill admitted there was a scandal after, but like the undocumented voter scandal, she only admitted it after it was in the media.

Investigators found that Caldwell made a romantic advance toward the staffer’s friend. After the advance was rejected, the report says Caldwell made a sexually explicit remark to the employee about younger women.

The report said the employee subsequently altered the way she interacted with Caldwell, attempted to distance herself from him, and avoided traveling with him when possible.

Caldwell denied making the remark, but investigators said they did not find his denial credible.

“Leaders have an obligation to make sure everyone in an organization is bought into the mission and able to succeed. I take that responsibility incredibly seriously. My goal as Governor is to empower our hardworking public servants, so they can remain focused on serving our state,” the governor said. “As a former federal prosecutor, I’m committed to ensuring everyone is treated fairly. This investigation was thorough and impartial. It was initiated by the Chief Ethics Officer and conducted by a respected former state Attorney General.”

Investigators Say Caldwell Tried to Help Girlfriend Get Promotion

The report also concluded that Caldwell violated ethics rules while attempting to secure a promotion for a state employee with whom he was romantically involved.

Investigators found Caldwell used his state email account to advocate for the employee without disclosing their relationship. The woman did not ultimately receive the promotion or a pay increase. The report also found that Caldwell brought personal guests to ticketed events without paying for their admission or obtaining appropriate ethics clearance.

According to reporting on the findings, investigators identified at least seven instances involving personal guests at ticketed events.

Sherrill said the conduct continued despite prior warnings and ethics training.

“These violations substantiated in the investigation reflect a pattern of behavior that does not meet the standards of this Administration,” Sherrill said.

“The substantiated finding of sexual harassment is extremely troubling,” she added.

Her complete statement was released through the New Jersey Governor’s Office. (NJ.gov)

Caldwell’s Attorney Calls Investigation ‘One-Sided’

Caldwell is disputing the findings through attorney Thomas Calcagni, who argued that the lieutenant governor was denied a meaningful opportunity to respond to each allegation.

Calcagni characterized the investigation as a “one-sided process” and challenged several of its conclusions.

Regarding the attempt to help the state employee receive a promotion, Calcagni said the report identified no evidence that Caldwell ordered anyone to promote the woman, controlled the hiring decision or demanded that she receive another position.

He also disputed the characterization of Caldwell’s attendance at ticketed events, arguing there was a difference between an ethics mistake and intentionally using public office for personal gain.

Caldwell had not announced his resignation as of early Friday morning.

Booker and Kim Join Call for Caldwell to Leave

Pressure increased Friday as both of New Jersey’s Democratic U.S. senators publicly called for Caldwell’s resignation.

“Governor Sherrill is absolutely right the conduct described in the investigative report is totally unacceptable,” Sen. Cory Booker said. “For the sake of our state Lt. Governor Caldwell should resign.” (New Jersey Globe)

Sen. Andy Kim also called on Caldwell to leave office immediately.

“New Jerseyans deserve to have public servants who work to earn and keep their trust, not undermine it,” Kim said. “The findings of the independent report are unacceptable.”

Republicans, meanwhile, are pushing for the inquiry to expand beyond Caldwell’s conduct and into how Sherrill’s campaign and administration handled warning signs surrounding her eventual running mate.

Questions Predate Sherrill Administration

The controversy does not begin with the May complaint.

Earlier this month, state Sen. Declan O’Scanlon pointed to allegations that a former Centenary University employee attempted to contact the Sherrill campaign during the 2025 gubernatorial race with concerns involving Caldwell, then the university’s president.

According to that account, someone affiliated with the campaign initially agreed to communicate with the woman before contact stopped.

O’Scanlon has argued that the episode raises questions about whether members of Sherrill’s campaign had information about concerns involving Caldwell before she selected him as lieutenant governor.

“The administration apparently had an opportunity to derail this debacle DURING THE CAMPAIGN…but chose to ghost, block and dox a female whistleblower…to try to protect then chose LG,” O’Scanlon wrote Thursday while responding to criticism of the administration.

Shore News Network previously reported on questions surrounding the attempted whistleblower contact and on Republican demands for an explanation of when Sherrill’s administration learned of the Caldwell investigation.

Investigation Began Months Before Voter-Roll Inquiry

The timing of Caldwell’s removal has also drawn attention because he serves not only as lieutenant governor but as New Jersey secretary of state, making him the state’s top elections official.

Caldwell’s office became involved this summer in responding to congressional inquiries after New Jersey disclosed that approximately 6,600 people who had identified themselves as non-U.S. citizens were improperly registered to vote because of problems in the Motor Vehicle Commission voter-registration process. State officials have said fewer than 400 were identified as having voted.

House Republican committees sought records and internal communications from Caldwell in that role.

The chronology, however, shows that the ethics investigation into Caldwell substantially predates that congressional voter-roll inquiry.

The anonymous complaint against Caldwell was received May 14, and the Sherrill administration retained former Attorney General Christopher Porrino and Lowenstein Sandler on May 21. Caldwell received formal notice May 22.

The House Republican request concerning the 6,600 registrations came later, in early August. (House Judiciary Committee Republicans)

There is currently no evidence in the released investigative report establishing that Sherrill’s demand for Caldwell’s resignation was connected to his cooperation with congressional investigators.

Shore News Network has extensively covered the separate New Jersey voter-registration controversy and a federal lawsuit seeking additional voter-registration records.

Legislative Hearings Now Being Demanded

Republican lawmakers are signaling that Caldwell’s resignation, if it occurs, will not end the controversy.

Assemblywoman Vicky Flynn has called for bipartisan legislative hearings examining both the investigation and the administration’s handling of the allegations.

“The disclosure of an internal investigation report commissioned by the governor cannot serve as a substitute for independent legislative oversight,” Flynn said.

O’Scanlon has similarly said questions remain about the campaign’s vetting of Caldwell and its handling of the Centenary whistleblower allegation.

The Caldwell controversy now touches several major areas of New Jersey politics: workplace conduct, government ethics, campaign vetting, transparency and the administration’s handling of allegations against one of the state’s highest-ranking elected officials.

Sherrill, for her part, said Thursday that Caldwell’s departure is “necessary and in the best interest of New Jersey residents.”

Whether Caldwell complies with her ultimatum — and whether lawmakers pursue hearings afterward — will determine the next phase of the controversy.