Sherrill appoints Shirley Emehelu New Jersey lieutenant governor

New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill appointed Shirley Emehelu lieutenant governor on Monday, November 9, filling a vacancy left by Dale Caldwell’s September resignation. Emehelu, who had been serving as acting secretary of state, was sworn in the same day at the Statehouse in Trenton, according to reports of the ceremony.

The appointment places Emehelu in the state’s second-highest executive office while she continues to serve as secretary of state. She had taken over that role after Caldwell’s departure and was responsible for overseeing the November 3 statewide elections. Sherrill praised her handling of the vote, saying about three million New Jerseyans voted without a hiccup despite federal scrutiny of ballots and voting stations.

Emehelu is a former prosecutor who worked with Sherrill in the U.S. attorney’s office in Newark. She previously served as New Jersey’s executive assistant attorney general and as acting state comptroller. She was born in Nigeria and moved to the United States as a young child. The appointment makes her the first immigrant to serve as New Jersey lieutenant governor, according to reports.

It is also the first time women have held both the governorship and...