Naughton and Harris will serve as deputy chief counsels to Sherrill

Governor Mikie Sherrill has tapped two longtime state-government veterans, Deirdre Naughton and Elizabeth Harris, to serve as deputy chief counsels under incoming Chief Counsel Tim Lydon.

Sherrill has also named Eash Haughton, a lobbyist and former advisor to Steve Sweeney’s 2025 gubernatorial campaign, to serve as her director of legislative affairs.

Naughton has spent the last fourteen years as the director of government affairs for the New Jersey Judiciary, working for Chief Justice Stuart Rabner and the Administrative Office of the Courts.  She previously spent five years as general counsel to the Advisor Committee on Judicial Conduct, and five years before that as an associate counsel to Governors James E. McGreevey, Richard J. Codey, and Jon Corzine.

Harris most recently served as acting director of the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs after Cari Fais left to become a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the District of New Jersey.  She served as a bureau chief of the New Jersey Bureau of Securities at Consumer Affairs.  Prior to joining New Jersey state government, Harris worked in public finance banking at Morgan Stanley and as general counsel to the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation.  She clerked for a federal judge in the Southern District of New York.

Parimal Garg and Kate McDonnell, who served as deputy chief counsels in Gov. Phil Murphy’s first term, each became chief counsel.

Haughton worked at Capital Impact Group, the firm run by Gerry Gibbs and Gene Mulroy, and for Avoq, the public affairs firm formerly known as Kivvit.    He’s a former aide to Assemblywoman Verlina Reynolds Jackson.

“When I first met then-Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill in 2023, I had no idea that the path ahead would include working on her campaign, supporting the transition, and now serving in her administration. What I did know was that she led with integrity, discipline, and a clear sense of responsibility to the people she serves,” Haughton said.  “Being in a position to help shape the future of New Jersey is a privilege. Protecting the most vulnerable, strengthening institutions, and ensuring government works as intended is work that demands both urgency and care.”