New Jersey’s second-highest official quit his job one day after state investigators said he sexually harassed a staffer and broke ethics rules over and over again.
Quick Take
- Lieutenant Governor Dale Caldwell resigned Friday after a state-hired law firm’s 61-page report found a “substantiated finding of sexual harassment” and repeated ethics violations.
- Governor Mikie Sherrill publicly called for his resignation one day before he stepped down, 39 days before the midterm elections.
- Investigators say Caldwell told a female staffer young women want “young sperm” and made an unwanted advance on a staffer’s friend.
- Caldwell denies wrongdoing, calls the report “specious” and “ridiculous,” and says he quit only to avoid distracting Sherrill’s administration.
What The Investigation Found
Former New Jersey Attorney General Chris Porrino led the four-month investigation after an anonymous complaint reached the governor’s office.
His team interviewed 17 people and produced a 61-page report describing “serious, repeated violations of state policy,” including ethical lapses and a substantiated sexual harassment claim tied directly to Caldwell’s own conduct.
JUST IN: New Jersey's lieutenant governor has resigned after the governor demanded he step down over sexual harassment allegations and ethical lapses involving his relationships with women. https://t.co/mzHWAe4AOE
— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) September 25, 2026
The most damaging detail involves a comment investigators say Caldwell made to a female staffer, telling her young women want “young sperm.”
The report also describes a romantic advance toward a staffer’s friend, and after she turned him down, inappropriate comments directed back at the staffer herself. Investigators separately concluded Caldwell pushed for a promotion for a state employee he was reportedly dating.
A Governor Under Pressure To Act Fast
Sherrill did not wait long once the report landed. She called for Caldwell’s resignation Thursday night, and he stepped down the very next day.
The speed sent a clear signal: a Democratic governor building her record ahead of a competitive midterm cycle had little appetite for a drawn-out defense of her own second-in-command.
The report also flagged smaller but telling ethics problems. Investigators said Caldwell brought personal guests to ticketed official events, including the opera, without paying or reimbursing the state as required.
Taken together, the findings paint a picture investigators called a “pattern and practice” of crossing lines meant to protect state employees and taxpayer resources.
Caldwell Pushes Back Hard On The Findings
Caldwell has not gone quietly. He told reporters the report was “specious” and full of “wrong things and mistakes,” insisting he was not resigning because of it. In his resignation letter he wrote that stepping down “should not be interpreted as an admission of wrongdoing or acceptance of the report’s findings,” adding that he “strongly disputes” the conclusions.
New Jersey Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell resigned after an administration investigation found sexual harassment and other alleged wrongdoing, according to multiple reports. Gov. Mikie Sherrill had called for Caldwell’s resignation after releasing the investigation’s findings. Reporting…
— Cool X Media Group (@teslamillion) September 26, 2026
His attorney, Thomas Calcagni, went further, calling the process “one-sided” and saying Caldwell never got a fair chance to respond to the allegations before the report went public.
Calcagni said the legal team is “fully exploring all legal remedies” to build what he called “a true, balanced, and unbiased record.”
That is a serious accusation about due process, and it deserves to be weighed honestly rather than waved away simply because Caldwell is the accused party here.
Still, the core finding came from an independent law firm hired by the state, not from a political rival with an obvious axe to grind.
A denial paired with complaints about process is not the same as producing a named witness, a document, or a fact that contradicts what investigators found.
Until Caldwell’s team puts forward something more concrete than objections to the process, the substantiated finding stands as the most credible account on record.
Part Of A Bigger Pattern In State Government
Caldwell’s exit fits a pattern seen across the country. The Associated Press has tracked at least 147 state lawmakers in 44 states accused of sexual harassment or misconduct since 2017, and more than a third of them either resigned or were expelled from office. Sexual misconduct claims against sitting officials rarely fade quietly.
They tend to end careers fast once an outside investigation backs them up, while denials and process complaints linger long after the resignation letter is signed.
Sherrill now has to fill the lieutenant governor’s office while managing the political fallout of having hand-picked Caldwell in the first place.
Voters heading into the midterms will be watching how she handles it, and whether her administration’s vetting process gets scrutiny of its own.
Sources:
nbcnews.com, abcnews.com, nytimes.com, theguardian.com, pbs.org, washingtonpost.com, apnews.com
