Kimberly Ann Guadagno (; ''née'' McFadden; born April 13, 1959) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the first

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

and 33rd

secretary of state of New Jersey The secretary of state of New Jersey oversees the Department of State, which is one of the original state offices. The Secretary is responsible for overseeing artistic, cultural, and historical programs within the U.S. state of New Jersey, as we ...

from 2010 to 2018. Guadagno was the Republican nominee for

Governor of New Jersey The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The official res ...

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a se ...

, but lost the subsequent election to Democrat

Phil Murphy Philip Dunton Murphy (born August 16, 1957) is an American financier, diplomat, and politician serving as the 56th governor of New Jersey since January 2018. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the United States ambassador to Germany ...

Early life and education

Kim Guadagno was born Kimberly Ann McFadden in

Waterloo, Iowa Waterloo is a city in and the county seat of Black Hawk County, Iowa, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census the population was 67,314, making it the eighth-largest city in the state. The city is part of the Waterloo – Cedar Fall ...

, the middle child of five of Mary Patricia "Pat" (Blevens) and Charles A. "Chuck" McFadden Jr. Her father's job in sales had her living in many different places prior to going to college. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from

Ursinus College Ursinus College is a private liberal arts college in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1869 and occupies a 170-acre campus. History 19th century In 1867, members of the German Reformed Church began plans to establish a college whe ...

Collegeville, Pennsylvania Collegeville is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, a suburb outside of Philadelphia on Perkiomen Creek. Collegeville was incorporated in 1896. It is the location of Ursinus College which opened in 1869. The population was 5,089 at ...

in 1980, and a J.D. degree in 1983 from the

Washington College of Law The American University Washington College of Law (AUWCL or WCL) is the law school of American University, a private research university in Washington, D.C. It is located on the western side of Tenley Circle in the Tenleytown section of nor ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

Career

Early legal work

Kim Guadagno is a former Assistant

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal c ...

for the

Eastern District of New York The United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York (in case citations, E.D.N.Y.) is the federal district court whose territorial jurisdiction spans five counties in New York State: the four Long Island counties of Nassau, S ...

and the District of New Jersey. She was also Assistant

New Jersey Attorney General The attorney general of New Jersey is a member of the executive cabinet of the state and oversees the Department of Law and Public Safety. The office is appointed by the governor of New Jersey, confirmed by the New Jersey Senate, and term limited. ...

. Serving as deputy chief of the U.S. Attorney's office's corruption unit from 1994–98, Guadagno was responsible for the corruption prosecutions of former Essex County Executive Thomas D'Alessio (a Democrat) and of Somerset County Prosecutor Nicholas Bissell (a Republican).Stile, Charles
"Christie announces lieutenant governor pick"
''

The Record (Bergen County) ''The Record'' (also called ''The North Jersey Record'', ''The Bergen Record'', ''The Sunday Record'' (Sunday edition) and formerly ''The Bergen Evening Record'') is a newspaper in New Jersey, United States. Serving Bergen, Essex, Hudson and ...

'', July 20, 2009. Accessed July 21, 2009 In 1994, in a case involving an executive of lottery contractor

GTECH Corporation GTECH Corporation was a gaming technology company based in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It was acquired in 2006 for $4.5 billion by Lottomatica of Italy, which later changed its own name to GTECH. Ticker symbol GTECH's ticker symb ...

, the U.S. Attorney's Office was criticized by the judge overseeing the case for the disclosure of grand jury testimony in a sentencing report; the issue was never referred for further ethical or legal investigation. The lottery executive went to jail. The D'Alessio and Bissell cases were each recognized as one of the top federal prosecutions in the country at the time by the US Department of Justice. She served as deputy director from 1998 to 2001 in the Division of Criminal Justice, where she supervised prosecutions of a $40 million financial fraud and of David L. Smith, creator of the "

Melissa Melissa is a female given name. The name comes from the Greek word μέλισσα (''mélissa''), "bee", which in turn comes from μέλι (''meli''), "honey". In Hittite, ''melit'' signifies "honey". ''Melissa'' also refers to the plant ''Me ...

computer worm A computer worm is a standalone malware computer program that replicates itself in order to spread to other computers. It often uses a computer network to spread itself, relying on security failures on the target computer to access it. It w ...

. She taught legal research and writing at

Rutgers School of Law–Newark Rutgers Law School is the law school of Rutgers University, with classrooms in Newark and Camden, New Jersey. It is the largest public law school and the 10th largest law school, overall, in the United States. Each class in the three-year J.D. pr ...

from 2003 until Nov. 2009. In 2005 Kim Guadagno was elected to Monmouth Beach's non-partisan governing body as one of its three Walsh Act commissioners.

Monmouth County Sheriff

Elected the 75th

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transl ...

of Monmouth County in 2007, succeeding Joseph Oxley, she became the first woman to serve in the post. As Sheriff, Kim Guadagno pursued an aggressive agenda to fight crime, strengthen community outreach and enact innovative initiatives. Sheriff Guadagno served as the chief executive and administrative officer of Monmouth County's largest law enforcement agency with nearly 700 employees who serve in the Law Enforcement Division, the 1,328 bed maximum security correctional institution, the

youth detention center In criminal justice systems, a youth detention center, known as a juvenile detention center (JDC),Stahl, Dean, Karen Kerchelich, and Ralph De Sola. ''Abbreviations Dictionary''. CRC Press, 20011202. Retrieved 23 August 2010. , . juvenile det ...

, the Civil Division and the Public Safety and 911 Emergency Dispatch Center. During her time as Sheriff the office received the Department of Defense Pro Patria Award which recognizes employers for their extraordinary support of employees who serve in the National Guard and Reserve. Under her supervision, the office also received the "Six Star" simultaneous accreditation of the law enforcement division, the correctional facility, correctional healthcare and youth detention center from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. The Monmouth County Sheriff's Office was the first out of 3,088 Sheriff's Offices in the United States to receive the award. The department was one of 11 accepted nationwide into the federal program established under

Immigration and Nationality Act Section 287(g) Section 287(g) of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act authorizes the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to deputize selected state and local law enforcement officers to enforce federal immigration law. Section 287(g) allows the DHS and law ...

which allowed corrections officers to check the immigration status of prisoners before they were released. The corrections department also instituted a GED program so inmates could continue their education while incarcerated. Sheriff Guadagno also expanded "Project Lifesaver," which uses bracelets with a radio-tracking device that allows Sheriff's Officers to locate persons with Alzheimer' or

Autism The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...

who wander or become lost. Furthermore, she held a county-wide Safety Fair to highlight the expansion of "Project Lifesaver" and to promote the multiple other programs offered to the community including "Reach for Your Dreams" an anti-drug, anti-gang program; "Safe CARGO" which specially trains and certifies sheriff's officers to inspect and properly install child safety seats; and "Child ID Program" a child photo ID program that allows children and parents to carry identification in the event their child becomes lost. Finally, Sheriff Guadagno was the first Sheriff in New Jersey to institute a medical ID program to help ensure appropriate medical and law enforcement response to medically sensitive persons, such as children with special needs and encouraged autism training at the Police Academy.

Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of State

On July 20, 2009, Republican gubernatorial nominee

Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician, lawyer, political commentator, Lobbying in the United States, lobbyist, and former United States Attorney, federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New J ...

chose Guadagno as his running mate, in the first New Jersey election to include voting for a lieutenant governor. Guadagno was selected over a number of other Republican women, including

State Senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

Diane Allen and

Bergen County Bergen County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Kathleen Donovan.Margolin, Josh; and Heininger, Claire
"Chris Christie introduces Monmouth Sheriff Kim Guadagno as GOP lieutenant gov. candidate"
''

The Star-Ledger ''The Star-Ledger'' is the largest circulated newspaper in the U.S. state of New Jersey and is based in Newark. It is a sister paper to ''The Jersey Journal'' of Jersey City, ''The Times'' of Trenton and the ''Staten Island Advance'', all of wh ...

'', July 20, 2009. Accessed July 21, 2009. Guadagno was not a well known political figure statewide in October 2009. According to

Fairleigh Dickinson University Fairleigh Dickinson University is a private university with its main campuses in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Founded in 1942, Fairleigh Dickinson University currently offers more than 100 degree programs to its students. In addition to its tw ...

's PublicMind Poll, Guadagno's name recognition in New Jersey was low with only 15% of voters reporting that they were aware of her. Out of the New Jersey voters that knew of Guadagno, 4% reported having a "very favorable" or "somewhat favorable" opinion while 3% reported that they had a "very unfavorable" or "somewhat unfavorable" opinion of the prospective Lieutenant Governor. Christie and Guadagno defeated

Jon Corzine Jon Stevens Corzine ( ; born January 1, 1947) is an American financial executive and retired politician who served as a United States Senator from New Jersey from 2001 to 2006 and the 54th governor of New Jersey from 2006 to 2010. Corzine ran fo ...

and Loretta Weinberg on November 3, 2009.Silverleib, Alan
"CNN projects Republicans win governor races in Virginia, New Jersey"

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by t ...

, November 3, 2009. Accessed November 3, 2009. Kim Guadagno 2010

Christie also appointed Guadagno New Jersey's Secretary of State and charged her with overseeing economic development efforts and the streamlining of government regulations. She was sworn in on January 19, 2010 as the first

Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey The lieutenant governor of New Jersey is an elected constitutional officer in the executive branch of the state government of New Jersey in the United States. The lieutenant governor is the second highest-ranking official in the state governmen ...

and the 33rd Secretary of State. As the Secretary of State, Guadagno was responsible for overseeing artistic, cultural, and historical programs within New Jersey, as well as volunteerism and community service projects within the state. She supervised multiple programs, including the State Archives, the state's research facility and repository for public records of historical value and the Division of Travel and Tourism, which is charged with promoting New Jersey as a premier travel destination. Additionally, Guadagno headed the Division of Elections and served as the Chief Elections Official and chair of the Board of State Canvassers, which certifies election results for federal and state office elections and public questions. She oversaw the Division of Programs which includes the Governor's Office of Volunteerism, the New Jersey Commission on National and Community Service, the Office of Faith Based Initiatives and the Center for Hispanic Policy, Research, and Development.

Candidacy for governor

Kim Guadagno was the 2017 Republican gubernatorial nominee, having won approximately 46.8% of the popular vote in the June 2017 statewide primary. She lost to Democrat

on November 7, 2017, garnering 42.2% to Murphy's 55.7%.

Post-political career

In April 2018, Guadagno joined law firm Connell Foley as a partner working out of its Jersey City office. In May 2019, Guadagno became CEO and president of Fulfill NJ (formerly known as The Foodbank of Monmouth and Ocean County). During her two year tenure at the foodbank, Guadagno closed a $1.5 million dollar budget gap, stabilized management, set a record for fundraising and managed the pandemic which included serving 10,000 more meals per day than pre pandemic. She was removed from the position in April 2021 amid disputes with Monmouth County officials, including Shaun Golden, the chair of the county Republican Party. That July, Guadagno left the Republican Party and registered as an unaffiliated voter, reportedly due to her discontent with Golden.

Controversies, issues and positions

Abortion

Guadagno supports a

pro-choice Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pr ...

position on

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregnan ...

but would like to see fewer women choose the option of abortion. She herself adopted a son. Christie expressed a

pro-life Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respons ...

stance on abortion during the primary campaign.Halbfinger, David M
"New Jersey G.O.P. Candidate Picks Woman as His No. 2"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', July 20, 2009. Accessed July 21, 2009.

Arts Council allegations

In early 2011, after reviewing a routine state audit of the prior administration’s affairs, Guadagno publicly criticized the New Jersey State Council on the Arts for its sloppy handling of public art projects, implying that state funds may have been fraudulently awarded. An official state investigation ended in December 2011 with no finding of wrongdoing. But, the insider contracts were cancelled, the money was returned and the director who awarded the insider contracts was replaced by the Council of the Arts. The officials who received funding from the contracts hired attorneys at their own expense.

Allegations of pension fraud

While she was Monmouth County Sheriff, in 2008, Guadagno hired Michael Donovan, a retired investigator with the county prosecutor's office, as her chief of law enforcement. Under state laws on "double dipping", anyone holding such a position must forego any public

pension A pension (, from Latin ''pensiō'', "payment") is a fund into which a sum of money is added during an employee's employment years and from which payments are drawn to support the person's retirement from work in the form of periodic payments ...

they are otherwise eligible to receive as long as they hold that position, and resume making

pension fund A pension fund, also known as a superannuation fund in some countries, is any plan, fund, or scheme which provides retirement income. Pension funds typically have large amounts of money to invest and are the major investors in listed and priva ...

contributions from their pay. To allow Donovan to do so, the position of chief warrant officer, in charge of serving

legal process Legal process (sometimes simply process) is any formal notice or writ by a court obtaining jurisdiction over a person or property. Common forms of process include a summons, subpoena, mandate, and warrant. Process normally takes effect by ...

and

arrest warrant An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by a judge or magistrate on behalf of the state, which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual, or the search and seizure of an individual's property. Canada Arrest warrants are issued by a ju ...

s, exempt from the pension system, was created for him within the department. However, Guadagno's

organizational chart An organizational chart, also called organigram, organogram, or organizational breakdown structure (OBS) is a diagram that shows the structure of an organization and the relationships and relative ranks of its parts and positions/jobs. The term ...

, memos to staff and a

press release A press release is an official statement delivered to members of the news media for the purpose of providing information, creating an official statement, or making an announcement directed for public release. Press releases are also considere ...

described Donovan as chief of law enforcement. While Guadagno later argued this saved taxpayers' money, those savings were more than offset by the additional money to pay Donovan's salary. Guadagno later claimed that the state Police and Firemen's Retirement System (PFRS) had approved her actions. However, in 2011 the PFRS board, responding to allegations of pension fraud within sheriff's offices around the state, requested that the office of

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

Paula T. Dow review records of Donovan's hiring for possible "false and conflicting statements" by Guadagno, by then lieutenant governor. Instead of requesting a

special prosecutor In the United States, a special counsel (formerly called special prosecutor or independent counsel) is a lawyer appointed to investigate, and potentially prosecute, a particular case of suspected wrongdoing for which a conflict of interest exis ...

, Governor Christie referred the case to Attorney General's Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ), which a year later concluded the investigation, telling the PFRS board that it could take administrative action but not sharing its finding as to whether criminal conduct had occurred. An

investigative reporter Investigative journalism is a form of journalism in which reporters deeply investigate a single topic of interest, such as serious crimes, political corruption, or corporate wrongdoing. An investigative journalist may spend months or years rese ...

sued the state to release the records of the investigation; in early 2016 a court ordered DCJ to release some of those records but excluded a five-page document on Guadagno's role. In short, no action was taken in response to the allegations, by either the bi-partisan pension board or the Attorney General's Office and Mr. Donovan remains in the Sheriff's Office to this day – years after his initial appointment.

Hoboken Sandy funds

On January 18, 2014, Mayor of Hoboken Dawn Zimmer, appearing on

MSNBC MSNBC (originally the Microsoft National Broadcasting Company) is an American news-based pay television cable channel. It is owned by NBCUniversala subsidiary of Comcast. Headquartered in New York City, it provides news coverage and political ...

, claimed that Guadagno had pulled her aside in a supermarket parking lot and directly linked Hoboken's receipt of Sandy funding to the approval of a large proposed private development project that required substantial zoning changes to move forward. Mayor Zimmer then said that several days later

Richard Constable Richard E. Constable III is an American lawyer who was the 16th Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, serving from 2012 to 2015. A former Assistant US Attorney, he was also the Deputy Commissioner of the New Jersey Depa ...

, director of the

New Jersey Department of Community Affairs The New Jersey Department of Community Affairs is a governmental agency of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The department is headed by Commissioner Sheila Oliver, who is also serving as lieutenant governor of New Jersey. Function The NJDCA prov ...

also insinuated to her that more Sandy relief funds would be released to the city if it approved the project in its northwest quadrant. The developer, the

Rockefeller Group Rockefeller Group is an American private company based in New York City, primarily involved in real estate operations in the United States and it is a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Estate Co. The company began with the development of Rockefeller Cent ...

, has ties with

Port Authority of New York and New Jersey The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, PANYNJ; stylized, in logo since 2020, as Port Authority NY NJ, is a joint venture between the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, established in 1921 through an interstate compact authorized ...

Chief David Samson, a Christie appointee and close Christie associate. On February 22 the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...

interviewed members of the city's government and potential witnesses, who were instructed to preserve any evidence they might possess. They were also asked by the office of

United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey The U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey is the chief federal law enforcement officer in New Jersey. On December 16, 2021, Philip R. Sellinger was sworn in as U.S. Attorney. The U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey has juri ...

, Paul Fishman, to not discuss the matter publicly. On January 31, the city acknowledged that it had received subpoenas from that office. After a 16-month investigation the US Attorney for NJ concluded that Zimmer's claims were unfounded. In letters dated May 1, 2015 to Guadagno, Constable and Ferzan the US Attorney wrote: "Based on the evidence developed during the investigation and our review of applicable law, we have concluded that no further action is warranted in this matter. Accordingly, the investigation of these allegations have been closed."

2010 vacation

In December 2010, Guadagno went on a scheduled vacation with her father who was dying of prostate cancer, while Governor Christie later decided to go with his family to

Disney World The Walt Disney World Resort, also called Walt Disney World or Disney World, is an entertainment resort complex in Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista, Florida, United States, near the cities of Orlando and Kissimmee. Opened on October 1, 1971, t ...

. With both officials out of state, a

blizzard A blizzard is a severe snowstorm characterized by strong sustained winds and low visibility, lasting for a prolonged period of time—typically at least three or four hours. A ground blizzard is a weather condition where snow is not falling b ...

hit New Jersey and Stephen M. Sweeney, the senate president and a Democrat, had to preside as acting governor to declare a state of emergency. Guadagno and Christie were criticized for both being out of state at the same time.

Personal life

Guadagno moved to New Jersey in 1991 and has been a resident of Monmouth Beach, a borough in Monmouth County, since marrying Michael Guadagno in 1991. Her husband was a judge of the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division. He was appointed to the bench in 2005 by then-Governor

Richard Codey Richard James Codey (born November 27, 1946) is an American Democratic Party politician who served as the 53rd governor of New Jersey from 2004 to 2006. He has served in the New Jersey Senate since 1982 and served as the President of the Senate ...

, and elevated to the Appellate Division by Chief Justice

Stuart Rabner Stuart Jeff Rabner (born June 30, 1960) is the chief justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court. He served as New Jersey Attorney General, Chief Counsel to Governor Jon Corzine, and as a federal prosecutor at the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Dist ...

in 2012."Judge Michael A. Guadagno Elevated to Appellate Division of Superior Court"
July 3, 2012. Accessed August 8, 2012. The Guadagnos have three sons. Judge Guadagno submitted his letter of resignation on January 26, 2017 in advance of reaching the mandatory judicial retirement age of 70 later that year. Because Lieutenant Governor Guadagno is also Secretary of State and thereby receives resignation and retirement letters of New Jersey judges, Judge Guadagno's resignation letter was addressed to his wife in her personal as well as official capacity, referred her then-prospective run for the post of Governor, and was signed "your loving husband". The Guadagnos have three sons. One of the three, Kevin, is a graduate of the

United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and Uni ...

and is an F-35 fighter pilot.

References

External links

* * , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Guadagno, Kim 1959 births Living people 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American lawyers 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians American women lawyers American women police officers Candidates in the 2017 United States elections Lieutenant Governors of New Jersey New Jersey lawyers New Jersey Independents New Jersey Republicans Sheriffs of Monmouth County, New Jersey People from Monmouth Beach, New Jersey Politicians from Waterloo, Iowa Rutgers School of Law–Newark faculty Secretaries of State of New Jersey Ursinus College alumni Washington College of Law alumni Women in New Jersey politics Women sheriffs Women legal scholars American women academics 20th-century American women