Wimberly says he would consider Lt. Gov. run, amid reports he’s in consideration

Amid reports that he could be picked as Rep. Mikie Sherrill’s lieutenant governor nominee, state Sen. Benjie Wimberly (D-Paterson) said he is honored and would consider running alongside the congresswoman.

Sherrill won last week’s Democratic primary; she will face Republican former Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli. Wimberly said he hasn’t had conversations about the lieutenant governorship, but said he will help however he can in the gubernatorial election, which he said is “very consequential” as one of just two such races in the country this year.

“Regardless of lieutenant governor, I’m all in with [Sherrill] to get her elected,” he said.

The New Jersey Globe reported last week that Wimberly is high on the list of possible Sherrill running mates, along with state Sen. Troy Singleton (D-Delran) and Passaic Mayor Hector Lora. NJ Advance Media’s Brent Johnson similarly reported that Wimberly was high on the list of potential lieutenant governor picks. 

Wimberly is less than half a year into his Senate tenure. When Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-Paterson) died last year, Wimberly was still an assemblyman, and he was one of several candidates who ran to replace Pascrell on the congressional ballot. But party leaders coalesced behind then-state Sen. Nellie Pou (D-North Haledon), his longtime running mate, who won a spot in Congress in November. 

That opened up Pou’s state Senate seat, which Wimberly and 35th district Assemblymate Shavonda Sumter (D-North Haledon) both sought. After a tie on the first ballot, local Democrats chose Wimberly over Sumter by one vote. 

The state senator, who once played a major role in budget talks as the vice chair of the Assembly Budget Committee, is no longer a central figure as the budget deadline nears, but said he is still pushing for further funding of his district.

“It’s a little different from being vice chair,” he joked.