新泽西州长谢里尔重启外州行程 参议院议长斯库塔里暂代州长职务
新泽西州特伦顿讯——新泽西州州长米基·谢里尔（Mikie Sherrill）10月8日（周四）恢复外州政治行程，这是自9月4日时任副州长戴尔·考德威尔（Dale Caldwell）争议曝光以来，她首次离开新泽西。参议院议长尼古拉斯·斯库塔里（Nicholas Scutari）于周四上午宣誓就任代理州长，在谢里尔外出期间依宪法行使州长职权。
谢里尔周四在芝加哥 Personal PAC 第33届周年颁奖午宴上发表主旨演讲。该组织支持主张生育权的候选人。周五，她为俄亥俄州民主党州长候选人艾米·阿克顿（Amy Acton）站台募款——阿克顿是一名医生，曾任俄亥俄州卫生厅厅长，11月将对阵共和党人维韦克·拉马斯瓦米（Vivek Ramaswamy）。
这次为期两天的伊利诺伊—俄亥俄之行，结束了谢里尔自9月初以来的外出行程暂停。当时《新泽西环球报》（New Jersey Globe）披露了针对考德威尔的调查，涉及其被指对女性的不当行为和违反伦理规范。此后谢里尔不再接受新的外州邀请，以避免在指控悬而未决期间让考德威尔掌权。
9月25日，考德威尔在谢里尔要求其去职的一天后辞职——此前内部调查已证实了性骚扰和伦理违规指控。考德威尔本人否认调查结论，并质疑调查程序的公正性。他的离职使副州长职位空缺，斯库塔里则依法在谢里尔每次离州时担任代理州长。
谢里尔须在11月9日前任命新的副州长，目前正在物色人选。
影响：此次出行标志着上任不到一年的民主党州长谢里尔重返全国政治舞台，在11月选举前为民主党同僚助选。而在新泽西州内，这场风波让该州的行政接班机制再度受到审视——法律评论人士主张，新州必须改革宪法中关于临时与永久接班的条款，避免将其曲解用来应对政治或伦理丑闻危机。谢里尔在11月9日截止日期前任命的副州长人选，将决定她本届任期剩余时间的领导格局。
背景：谢里尔在2025年州长选举中胜出，成为新泽西州新任州长——此前她是联邦众议员，也曾任联邦检察官和海军直升机飞行员，上任尚不满一年。此次中西部之行是她重返全国助选舞台的第一步：Personal PAC 是长期支持生育权候选人的政治组织，而俄亥俄州长选举中，阿克顿与拉马斯瓦米的对决被视为2026年中期选举的重要风向标之一。
在新州国内，副州长空缺已引发对行政接班机制的讨论。《新泽西法律期刊》10月9日发表社论，呼吁州领导人改革宪法中关于临时与永久接班的条款，避免将其延伸适用于政治或伦理丑闻引发的危机。谢里尔须在11月9日前提名新的副州长人选，这一任命将决定她本届任期剩余时间的领导班子。
New Jersey Gov. Sherrill Resumes Out-of-State Travel as Senate President Scutari Serves as Acting Governor
TRENTON, N.J. — New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill resumed out-of-state political travel on October 8, her first trip outside New Jersey since a controversy involving then-Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell became public on September 4. Senate President Nicholas Scutari was sworn in as acting governor Thursday morning, assuming the constitutional authority of the governorship while Sherrill travels.
Sherrill delivered the keynote address Thursday at Personal PAC's 33rd Anniversary Awards Lunch in Chicago. The organization supports candidates who favor reproductive rights. On Friday, she headlined an Ohio fundraiser for Amy Acton, the Democratic nominee for governor and a physician who previously served as the state's health director. Acton faces Republican Vivek Ramaswamy in November.
The two-day trip to Illinois and Ohio ends a pause in Sherrill's travel that began after the New Jersey Globe disclosed an investigation into Caldwell's alleged behavior toward women and ethics violations. Sherrill subsequently held off on accepting new out-of-state invitations, avoiding circumstances that would have put Caldwell in charge while the allegations remained unresolved.
Caldwell resigned on September 25, one day after Sherrill demanded his departure following an internal investigation that substantiated sexual harassment and ethics violations. Caldwell has disputed the findings and challenged the fairness of the investigative process. His departure left the lieutenant governor's office vacant and moved Scutari into the role of acting governor whenever Sherrill leaves New Jersey.
Sherrill has until November 9 to appoint a new lieutenant governor and is weighing potential candidates.
Impact: The trip signals Sherrill's return to the national stage as a Democratic governor less than a year into her term, campaigning for fellow Democrats ahead of the November elections. At home, the episode has renewed attention on New Jersey's executive succession framework — legal commentators have argued the state must reform the constitutional provisions governing temporary and permanent succession to avoid stretching them to manage a crisis of political or ethical misconduct. Whoever Sherrill names as lieutenant governor by the November 9 deadline will shape the state's leadership for the remainder of her term.
图片来源：Famartin 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0（Wikimedia Commons）
