Secretary of State Tahesha Way to be named N.J. lieutenant governor

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy is expected to appoint Tahesha Way as the second-in-command of the Garden State.

Way, who is succeeding the late Sheila Oliver, would be the second Black woman to serve as lieutenant governor. She will be the third ever lieutenant governor of New Jersey.

According to several sources, the appointment will be announced Friday morning at the capital complex.

Way has served as Murphy’s secretary of state since 2018. Prior to that, she was an administrative law judge for the state and a Passaic County Freeholder.

In her current position on Murphy’s cabinet, Way oversees elections in the state. She led the 2020 census count for New Jersey. She is the first Black person and first secretary from New Jersey to lead the National Association of Secretaries of State as president.

Way, who lives with her husband and children in Passaic County, is a Brown University  graduate and holds a law degree from the University of Virginia. According to her bio, she has previously taught religious education, and worked as a radio announcer for WBUR-FM.

Way’s appointment does not need to be confirmed by the state Senate.

Murphy had until Sept. 15 to pick a successor to Sheila Oliver, who passed away on Aug. 1.

Oliver has been celebrated as a trailblazing, passionate, and “genuine” political leader who shattered several ceilings. She was the first Black lieutenant governor and the first Black woman to serve as assembly speaker.