New revelations in a Naval Academy scandal have rocked New Jersey politics as Democratic congresswoman and gubernatorial hopeful Mikie Sherrill faces new scrutiny over her past. Records show Sherrill was barred from walking at her 1994 U.S. Naval Academy graduation after being implicated in one of the school’s largest cheating scandals, which involved 130 midshipmen.
Sherrill’s name was left off the official commencement program, according to documents obtained by the New Jersey Globe. When pressed, Sherrill admitted she was punished but tried to frame it as a matter of loyalty: “I didn’t turn in some of my classmates, so I didn’t walk, but graduated and was commissioned as an officer in the U.S. Navy, serving for nearly ten years with the highest level of distinction and honor.”
However, Sherrill has refused to authorize the release of her sealed disciplinary records — a decision that only fuels speculation about what really happened. For voters, this raises troubling questions: Was she protecting classmates, or herself?
The scandal speaks to a broader pattern in Democratic politics — leaders who preach transparency but hide their own past misdeeds.
As Sherrill runs for governor, New Jerseyans deserve honesty. Instead, they are left with secrecy and spin surrounding a candidate who wants to lead their state
