NEW JERSEY (WABC) — Mikie Sherrill will become the first Democratic woman to lead New Jersey at a 10 a.m. ceremony later this morning.
The former Navy pilot and federal prosecutor will be sworn in as the 57th governor of New Jerseyat the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) in Newark, with an inaugural celebration at American Dream in East Rutherford.
The changing of the guard from Governor Phil Murphy to Sherrill will be the first time in decades New Jersey gets a third term with a Democratic governor after Sherrill’s solid win in the 2025 election by nearly 14 percentage points, but the four-term congresswoman has made it clear she’s not thrilled with the status quo.
“We are going to very quickly show that we have a new agenda here in New Jersey,” Sherrill said.
The 54-year-old mother of four campaigned on affordability and taking swings at Trump administration policies. On Sunday, she told ABC’s “This Week” that the president’s focus should be more on the economy than deploying military officers into American cities and taking over Greenland.
“Can you imagine the cost that that would be to everybody’s pocketbook? And I can guarantee you, after spending a year and speaking to thousands of people across the state, that there is not one person in New Jersey that wakes up in the morning and says, ‘gee, I hope today’s the day that the president dumps billions of dollars into buying Greenland, while my grocery store costs continue to go up,'” Sherrill said.
Sherrill says if her party wants to keep winning in this year’s midterms, candidates have to continue to talk to people.
Shoveling snow and ice from a Camden sidewalk Monday morning for an MLK day of service, she addressed concerns about ICE raids, saying anyone who breaks the law should face repercussions, but law-abiding working immigrants will be protected.
“Here in New Jersey, we recently saw a 9-year-old was dropped off at school. They picked up his dad,” she said. “I’m not clear if they had a plan for that child and who was going to pick him up at school. That’s unacceptable.”
Sherrill has promised on her first day as governor to declare a state of emergency on, and sign an executive order to freeze rate hikes, along with other measures to lower utility costs that will take more time.
She says she knows the nation is watching to see how effective she is in her first year governing leading into the midterms.
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