Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ) tapped Jen Davenport as New Jersey‘s 63rd attorney general on Monday.
Davenport previously worked in the current New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin’s office as the state’s first assistant attorney general and as division counsel for the state division of the Drug Enforcement Administration. She currently serves as Deputy General Counsel and Chief Litigation Counsel at PSE&G, the largest electric and gas utility company in New Jersey.
Davenport said she shares Sherrill’s mission of “keeping residents safe and making the state affordable,” giving a preview of her priorities in a Monday statement.
“I have spent my career in public service and alongside law enforcement, and in each role, I have worked to bring people together and solve the toughest problems facing our state. So, from taking on gun violence and human trafficking, to protecting our children, to ensuring affordability, to defending New Jerseyans from attacks out of Washington, I will build on my career in law enforcement and in public service to protect New Jerseyans every day,” Davenport said.
Sherrill previously worked with Davenport at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, where she said she witnessed Davenport’s “ironclad commitment to upholding the law and the Constitution.”
“Equally as powerful is her dedication to public service, working hand-in-hand with the communities she served to ensure our residents felt safe and supported. Jen’s ability to work with anyone and everyone to deliver for our residents and her decade and a half of experience with complex civil and criminal cases will be essential as we work to build a more affordable Garden State,” Sherrill said in a statement.
Sherrill ran a campaign on lowering costs, particularly utility costs, for New Jerseyans. Davenport, the top lawyer for PSE&G, would recuse herself, if needed, from cases on a case-by-case basis, a spokesperson for Sherrill told the Washington Examiner.
“Recusals are done on a case-by-case basis. Jen will act in accordance with the highest ethical standards to ensure there is no conflict or an appearance of a conflict of interest,” the spokesperson said.
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The top state prosecutor’s office in New Jersey has made many headlines as Platkin, who serves under Gov. Phil Murphy’s (D-NJ) administration, challenged crisis pregnancy centers, President Donald Trump on issues like immigration, and Democratic power brokers. New Jersey is one of five states in which the governor appoints the attorney general.
“I am thrilled that Jen Davenport will serve as New Jersey’s next Attorney General. Jen is, without question, one of the finest public servants I have ever known, and will do an extraordinary job as our State’s chief law enforcement officer,” Platkin said in a statement.