Aaron Binder may be Mikie Sherrill’s new State Treasurer

Aaron Binder, one of the state’s top budget experts, has emerged as the leading contender for State Treasurer, the New Jersey Globe has learned.

But Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill has not yet made a final decision on a replacement for State Treasurer Elizabeth Muoio.

Sherrill, who takes office on January 20, must present a state budget to the legislature in about eight weeks.

Binder became Deputy State Treasurer in December 2021 after serving as deputy executive director of the Assembly Majority Office during a 16-year stint with the Assembly.  He was the lead aide for the Assembly Budget Committee and was the in-house expert on fiscal issues.

He runs the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Revenue and Economic Analysis.

Before joining the Assembly staff in 2006, Binder was the chief financial officer for Conreso de Latinos Unidos.  A longtime star of the Assembly Majority Office’s Golden Dome League softball team, Binder – known as “Binder the Sidewinder” for his distinctive throwing form — was former major league baseball pitcher Nelson Figueroa’s closer when they played together on the Brandeis University team.

Muoio served in the State Assembly and as a Mercer County Freeholder before Gov. Phil Murphy named her State Treasurer after the 2017 election.

NJ.com reported today that Secretary of Higher Education Brian Bridges, citing a desire to be closer to his family in New Jersey, announced he will depart at the end of December, about three weeks before Gov. Phil Murphy leaves office.

Murphy will likely designate Angela Bethea, the Assistant Secretary and CFO of the Department of Higher Education, to replace Bridges for the final twenty days of his term.