After Caldwell resigns, Sherrill’s ethics report and Acting SOS pick set the midterm election clock

A Lowenstein Sandler investigation substantiated sexual-harassment and ethics violations against then–Lt. Gov./Secretary of State Dale G. Caldwell. Governor Mikie Sherrill released the report, forced a resignation within a day, and moved Acting Comptroller Shirley Emehelu into the elections job with 39 days to the midterms.

TRENTON — An independent investigation into then–Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of State Dr. Dale G. Caldwell substantiated a workplace sexual-harassment policy violation and two state ethics violations. Governor Mikie Sherrill released the report on September 24, 2026, gave Caldwell until the next day to resign, accepted that resignation on September 25, and immediately named Acting State Comptroller Shirley Emehelu as Acting Secretary of State — with, in Sherrill’s words, “just 39 days away from the midterm elections.”

Jersey Intel compared the investigators’ findings to Sherrill’s two public statements. The paper trail is succession under an election clock: who ran the Department of State, what the report said they did, and who is running elections now.

What the report found

The September 23, 2026 Investigation Report Re: Lieutenant Governor Dr. Dale G. Caldwell was prepared by Lowenstein Sandler LLP attorneys Christopher S. Porrino and Shontae D. Gray. The Chief Ethics Officer to the Office of the Governor engaged the firm after an anonymous letter dated May 6, 2026, reached that office on May 14. Caldwell received formal notice of the investigation on May 22, 2026.

The report states that Caldwell held two positions at once — Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of State — with separate staffs sharing a single calendar. Investigators reviewed conduct in both capacities.

In its conclusion, Lowenstein Sandler wrote that credible evidence substantiates three findings:

1. Caldwell violated the New Jersey State Policy Prohibiting Discrimination in the Workplace (“Workplace Policy”) in his conduct toward women, including by commenting to a female staffer that young women want “young sperm.”
2. He violated the Uniform Ethics Code and the Code of Conduct when he brought guests to ticketed events without payment or reimbursement.
3. He violated the Uniform Ethics Code and the Code of Conduct when he sought a promotion for a state employee with whom he had a romantic relationship.

Workplace Policy / sexual harassment

The executive summary says credible evidence shows Caldwell made a romantic advance toward a female staffer’s friend; after the advance was rebuffed, he told the staffer, in reference to her and her friend, that “you young women are looking for young sperm.” Investigators found the comment sexual in nature, that it caused the staffer to change how she interacted with him at work, to distance herself, and to avoid travel with him when possible, and that the conduct “constituted sexual harassment” and was derogatory or demeaning with reference to the staffer’s sex. Caldwell denied making the comment; the report states investigators “did not find his denial credible.”

The report also documents prior warnings: workplace-conduct training on February 27, 2026; a March 25 call in which an advisor told Caldwell that reliable sources had raised a concerning pattern in his approaches to women; and a private admonition by senior officials immediately after a May 1 ethics training.

Guests at ticketed events

Investigators identified seven ticketed events between February 19 and May 23, 2026, at which Caldwell reportedly appeared with one or more guests admitted without payment. Where ticket costs were known, they ranged from about $65 to $300. The report finds he continued the practice after formal and informal ethics guidance, including Code of Conduct / Uniform Ethics Code trainings and staff discussions about guests at events in February, April, and May 2026. A footnote states that after receiving notice of the investigation, Caldwell reimbursed a guest’s attendance at a single event.

Promotion advocacy for a romantic partner

Using his state email account, on May 26, 2026 — “less than one month after being admonished and trained” on workplace and ethics matters, and “four days after the Chief Ethics Officer formally notified him of this investigation” — Caldwell contacted an official in another executive-branch department and suggested that a state employee receive a promotion, the report says. That email followed a verbal request to a different official in that department the week before. Caldwell admitted to investigators that he did not disclose the romantic nature of the relationship while making the requests. In the May 26 email, according to the report, he referred to the employee as “my friend,” forwarded her resume and letter of interest, and wrote that she “would be a great addition to the [department’s] leadership team.”

The Uniform Ethics Code, the report notes, forbids a state officer from involving himself in his official capacity in any matter that pertains to or involves an individual with whom he has a dating relationship. The department declined to advance the candidacy; the report states the employee “now works outside of state government.”

What Sherrill said September 24 — and how it tracks

In a written statement releasing the report, Sherrill said the investigation “found that the Lieutenant Governor engaged in serious, repeated violations of state policy and failed to uphold the responsibilities of his office.” She announced: “I’m calling for his resignation and giving him until tomorrow to do so.”

She described “ethical lapses” that “persisted despite multiple warnings and trainings” and called “the substantiated finding of sexual harassment … extremely troubling.” She said the probe “was initiated by the Chief Ethics Officer and conducted by a respected former state Attorney General,” that it “fully examined the evidence, followed the facts, and protected everyone’s privacy,” and that “the Lieutenant Governor’s resignation is necessary and in the best interest of New Jersey residents.”

Those public points align with the report’s core substantiations — Workplace Policy / sexual harassment, ethics violations despite training, and a Chief Ethics Officer–initiated review by Lowenstein (Porrino is a former New Jersey attorney general). The statement does not detail the May 26 timing relative to formal notice, the unpaid-guest event list, or the dual LG–SOS staffing structure that the report lays out.

September 25: resignation accepted, elections clock, Acting SOS

The next day, speaking “directly to … the people of New Jersey,” Sherrill said she had called for Caldwell’s resignation after releasing the independent investigation, restated that the report found he “failed to uphold the responsibilities of his office” and showed “a pattern of behavior that does not meet the standards of this Administration,” and again cited “serious, repeated violations of state policy, including ethical lapses and a substantiated finding of sexual harassment.”

“I gave the Lieutenant Governor until today to resign,” she said. “He submitted his resignation to me this afternoon, which I accepted.”

She thanked him for campaign and early-administration work “particularly in supporting our business agenda,” and for work “addressing the longstanding challenges facing Black communities,” adding that her administration would continue that work. She said she would “move swiftly and thoughtfully in choosing a new Lieutenant Governor.”

Then the election clock: “And as you know, we are just 39 days away from the midterm elections. It is of paramount importance that our elections run smoothly — and that New Jerseyans have confidence in the officials overseeing them.”

“To that end,” she said, “I have named Acting Comptroller Shirley Emehelu — who is with me today — to serve as Acting Secretary of State.” Sherrill described Emehelu as “a veteran of the U.S. Department of Justice and the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office,” said she “has the judgment to run our elections,” and expressed “full faith that Shirley and the team at the Department of State will make sure all eligible New Jerseyans can make their voices heard this November.”

Accountability succession — not soft politics

Read together, the primary documents show a compressed accountability sequence:

Date	Document	Action
May 6–22, 2026	Report narrative	Anonymous complaint → Chief Ethics Officer → Lowenstein engagement; Caldwell formally notified May 22
May 26, 2026	Report finding	State-email promotion advocacy for romantic partner, four days after notice
Sep 23, 2026	Investigation report	Three substantiated findings (Workplace Policy; unpaid ticketed guests; promotion advocacy)
Sep 24, 2026	Governor’s statement	Report released; resignation demanded by next day
Sep 25, 2026	Governor’s remarks	Resignation accepted; Acting Comptroller Emehelu named Acting SOS; 39 days to midterms

Caldwell’s dual role meant the same official sat as lieutenant governor and as the state’s chief elections officer. Removing him under substantiated findings, then parking elections leadership with the then–Acting State Comptroller — an oversight office built around audits and investigations — is a succession story about who holds the midterm clock, not a personality feature.

Sherrill’s September 24 and 25 statements correctly summarize the report’s headline conclusions. The report itself supplies the harder chronology: repeated trainings and admonitions before the formal probe, unpaid guests across multiple ticketed events, and promotion outreach after Caldwell had been told he was under investigation.