Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey
| New Jersey Lieutenant Governor | |
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| General information | |
| Office Type: | Partisan |
| Office website: | Official Link |
| Compensation: | $175,000 |
| 2024 FY Budget: | $2,074,805 |
| Term limits: | 2 consecutive terms |
| Structure | |
| Length of term: | 4 years |
| Authority: | New Jersey Constitution, Article V, Section I |
| Selection Method: | Elected |
| Current Officeholder | |
Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey
Tahesha Way | |
| Elections | |
| Next election: | November 4, 2025 |
| Last election: | November 2, 2021 |
| Other New Jersey Executive Offices | |
| Governor • Lieutenant Governor • Secretary of State • Attorney General • Treasurer • Comptroller• Commissioner of Education • Agriculture Secretary • Insurance Commissioner • Commissioner of Environmental Protection • Labor Commissioner • Public Utilities Board | |
The Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey is an elected constitutional officer, the second ranking officer of the executive branch and the first officer in line to succeed the Governor of New Jersey. The lieutenant governor is popularly elected every four years by a plurality.[1]
The position was created as the result of a constitutional amendment to the New Jersey State Constitution passed by the voters on November 8, 2005, and effective as of January 17, 2006.[1]
Current officeholder
- See also: Current Lieutenant Governors
The current lieutenant governor is Tahesha Way (D), who was appointed in 2023.[2]
Authority
The New Jersey Constitution establishes the office of lieutenant governor in Article V, the Executive.
Under Article V, Section I, paragraph 4, officially amended on January 17, 2006:
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The Governor and Lieutenant Governor shall be elected conjointly and for concurrent terms by the legally qualified voters of this State...[1] |
Qualifications
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Candidates for lieutenant governor must be:[1]
- at least 30 years old
- a U.S. citizen for at least 20 years
- a resident of New Jersey for at least seven years
Elections
- See also: Gubernatorial election cycles by state
- See also: Election of lieutenant governors
New Jersey holds off-year elections, that is, elections in odd-numbered years that are neither presidential nor midterm years. Elections are held in the year after a presidential election and before a midterm (e.g. 2021, 2025, 2029, and 2033). Legally, the inauguration is always held the third Tuesday in the January after an election.[3]
Term limits
Lieutenant governors of New Jersey may only hold two consecutive terms and must be out of office for another full term before being able to run again. These term limits are imposed by Article V, Section 1 of the New Jersey Constitution, which specifies that a person is eligible to run for lieutenant governor only if eligible to run for governor.
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A person shall be eligible for the office of Lieutenant Governor only if eligible under this Constitution for the office of Governor.[4] |
Article V, Section 1 of the New Jersey Constitution establishes term limits for the governor, prohibiting a governor from serving more than two consecutive terms.
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No person who has been elected Governor for two successive terms, including an unexpired term, shall again be eligible for that office until the third Tuesday in January of the fourth year following the expiration of the second successive term.[5] |
Vacancies
Details of vacancies are addressed under Article V, Section I, paragraph 5.
The president pro tem of the senate is the first to succeed if the governor's and lieutenant governor's chairs are simultaneously vacant. Second in line is the speaker of the state assembly. Any officer serving as an acting lieutenant governor holds the office until an election is held and has the full powers of the office.
A special election will be called to fill the office at the next general election, unless that election is less than 60 days away, in which case the office will be filled the second general election. Additionally, no special election may be scheduled in a year when the lieutenant governor's office would be elected anyway.[1]
Duties
The New Jersey Constitution requires that the governor appoint the lieutenant governor to head at least one principle department or agency, though that position may not be the attorney general's office.[1]
Divisions
Note: Ballotpedia's state executive officials project researches state official websites for information that describes the divisions (if any exist) of a state executive office. That information for the Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey has not yet been added. After extensive research we were unable to identify any relevant information on state official websites. If you have any additional information about this office for inclusion on this section and/or page, please email us.
State budget
- See also: New Jersey state budget and finances
There is no budget for the office of New Jersey Lieutenant Governor.[6] The lieutenant governor serves as both lieutenant governor and secretary of state, and the budget comes out of the department of state. The budget for the Department of State in Fiscal Year 2024 was $2,074,805.[7]
Compensation
- See also: Compensation of state executive officers and Comparison of lieutenant gubernatorial salaries
The salaries of the governor and lieutenant governor are established by the New Jersey State Legislature as mandated by the state constitution. Article V, Section I, Paragraph 12 of the New Jersey Constitution says the following:[8]
| Text of Section I, Paragraph 12:
10. a. The Governor and the Lieutenant Governor shall each receive for services a salary, which shall be neither increased nor diminished during the period for which the Governor or Lieutenant Governor shall have been elected or appointed. b. The Governor shall appoint the Lieutenant Governor to serve as the head of a principal department or other executive or administrative agency of State government, or delegate to the Lieutenant Governor duties of the office of Governor, or both. The Governor shall not appoint the Lieutenant Governor to serve as Attorney General. The Lieutenant Governor shall in addition perform such other duties as may be provided by law.[1] |
A seven-member salary commission determined annual pay for state officials from its creation in 1999 until legislators eliminated the commission in 2014. [9][10][11]
2022
In 2022, the officer's salary was $175,000, according to the Council of State Governments.[12]
2021
In 2021, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $175,000, according to the Council of State Governments.[13]
2020
In 2020, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $175,000 according to the Council of State Governments.[14]
2019
In 2019, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $141,000 according to the Council of State Governments.[15]
2018
In 2018, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $141,000 according to the Council of State Governments.[16]
2017
In 2017, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $141,000 according to the Council of State Governments.[17]
2016
In 2016, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $141,000 according to the Council of State Governments.[18]
2015
In 2015, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $141,000 according to the Council of State Governments.[19]
2014
In 2014, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $141,000 according to the Council of State Governments.[20]
2013
In 2013, the lieutenant governor was paid an estimated $141,000.[21]
2010
In 2010, the lieutenant governor was paid $141,000, the fourth highest lieutenant gubernatorial salary in America.<ref
Historical officeholders
Sheila Oliver (D) was the second Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey, serving from 2018 to 2023. Kim Guadagno (R) served as the state's first lieutenant governor from 2010 to 2018.
Contact information
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
PO Box 001
Trenton, NJ 08625
Phone: (609) 292-6000
See also
| New Jersey | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 New Jersey Legislature, "New Jersey State Constitution 1947," accessed January 19, 2021
- ↑ Associated Press, "Tahesha Way sworn in as New Jersey’s lieutenant governor after death of Sheila Oliver," September 8, 2023
- ↑ New Jersey Constitution, "Article V, Section I," accessed November 4, 2021
- ↑ New Jersey Legislature, "New Jersey State Constitution 1947," accessed May 14, 2020
- ↑ New Jersey Legislature, "New Jersey State Constitution 1947," accessed May 14, 2020
- ↑ PolitickerNK, "Gov's Office takes issue with AP salary story," accessed June 24, 2013
- ↑ State of New Jersey, "Appropriations Handbook: Fiscal Year 2023-2024," accessed December 6, 2023
- ↑ New Jersey State Legislature, "FY2021 Revised Budget Proposal," accessed January 20, 2021
- ↑ NJ.com, "N.J. Republican leaders block pay raises for top state officials," September 28, 2011
- ↑ New Jersey State Legislature, "Joint Resolution No. 1," March 5, 1999
- ↑ LegiScan, "Assembly, No. 3067," February 7, 2013
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2022 Table 4.11: Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries," provided to Ballotpedia by CSG personnel
- ↑ Issuu, "The Book of the States 2021," accessed September 22, 2022
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "The Book of the States 2020," accessed January 20, 2021
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "The Book of the States 2019," accessed January 20, 2021
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "The Book of the States 2018," accessed January 20, 2021
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "The Book of the States 2017," accessed January 20, 2021
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries, 2016," accessed August 27, 2016
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries, 2015," accessed August 27, 2016
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries," accessed December 3, 2014
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Table 4.11 Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries," accessed January 31, 2014
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