What will happen at the Sherrill-Caldwell Inauguration

When Mikie Sherrill takes the oath of office as the 57th Governor today, she’ll do so with her hand on William Paterson’s bound copy of the Constitution of the State of New Jersey, the U.S. Constitution, and the Declaration of Independence.

On stage with Sherrill will be New Jersey’s original parchment copy of the U.S. Constitution, approved in 1787 – one of thirteen copies known to still exist.

Sherrill and her new lieutenant governor, Dale Caldwell, will be sworn in by Chief Justice Stuart Rabner.  The state’s incoming first gentleman, Jason Hedberg, will hold the constitutions and declaration for his wife; Caldwell will be sworn in on his family bible, held by his daughter, Ashley, a New Brunswick school board member.

Sherrill’s staff estimates a crowd of over 2,000 people for today’s inauguration at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark.

Guests will include seven New Jersey Governors – Thomas Kean, Christine Todd Whitman, Donald DiFrancesco, James E. McGreevey, Jon Corzine, Chris Christie, and Phil Murphy – along with Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger and Delaware Gov. Matt Meyer.   Spanberger, a Red Bank native, was one of Sherrill’s closest friends while the two served in Congress and they shared a home in Washington; Sherrill traveled to Richmond on Saturday to attend Spanberger’s swearing in.

U.S. Senator Cory Booker, Senate President Nicholas Scutari, Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, Senate Minority Leader Anthony Bucco, Assembly Minority Leader John DiMaio, Lt. Governor Tahesha Way, and Reps. Frank Pallone, Donald Norcross, Bonnie Watson Coleman, Josh Gottheimer, Robert J. Menendez, LaMonica McIver, Herb Conaway, and Nellie Pou will be in attendance. So will House Minority Leader Hakeen Jeffries, Reps. Chrissy Houlahan, Gregory Meeks, Lori Trahan, Adriano Espaillat, and Scott Peter; former Rep. Joseph Kennedy; and former Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno.  Members of the New Jersey Legislature will attend, along with

Additional guests include former Chief of Naval Operations Lisa Franchetti, former U.S. Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro, former Giants star Tiki Barber, and leadership representing two dozen countries and key NATO allies.

Some of Sherrill’s colleagues from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and classmates from the Naval Academy and fellow service members from the U.S. Navy.  The New Jersey National Guard & New Jersey State Police Pipe & Drum will present colors.

The invocation will be delivered by the Rev. Dr. Charles Franklin Boyer, the pastor of Greater Mt. Zion A.M.E. Church in Trenton, New Jersey, and the founder of Salvation and Social Justice.

Emerson Crooks, who served as a U.S. Marine in Vietnam and is a community leader in Morris County, will lead the pledge of allegiance. The national anthem will be sung by Genesis Rincon, a senior at Stockton University.

The inauguration will feature a 19 Cannon Salute by the New Jersey National Guard, and a Blackhawk Helicopter Flyover from the New Jersey Air National Guard; the pilots and crew are all from New Jersey, except for a woman in Virginia.