speculation that new jersey gov. chris christie could secure a position in president-elect donald trump <u+2019>s administration drew attention wednesday to lt. gov. kim guadagno, who would fill the state<u+2019>s highest office should mr. christie resign for a job in washington. a spokeswoman for mr. trump and aides to mr. christie didn<u+2019>t respond to requests for comment. mr. christie, a republican, was selected by mr. trump in may to lead the transition to the white house. if mr. christie steps down, new jersey<u+2019>s constitution stipulates that the lieutenant governor would become governor and serve out the remainder of the current term, state officials said. <u+201c>i am prepared to serve as governor should governor christie become part of the new administration,<u+201d> mrs. guadagno said in a statement. <u+201c>that<u+2019>s what lieutenant governors do.<u+201d> mr. christie is prevented by term limits from running for a third term and is scheduled to leave office in january 2018. the general election for his successor is next november. former goldman sachs executive phil murphy is the front-runner for democratic nomination in the race. mrs. guadagno, 57, a monmouth beach resident and former federal prosecutor, was elected on mr. christie<u+2019>s ticket in 2009. the governor had her oversee the new jersey department of state and run economic development initiatives. mrs. guadagno has largely operated in the background during her time in trenton, said brigid harrison, who teaches political science and law at montclair state university. <u+201c>chris christie is such a large presence that there wasn<u+2019>t a whole lot of room for the lieutenant governor, given his strong personality,<u+201d> ms. harrison said. <u+201c>in my view, her talents were probably underutilized for most of her tenure.<u+201d> mrs. guadagno is well-known and respected in the state<u+2019>s business community, said tom bracken, president and chief executive of the new jersey chamber of commerce. the lieutenant governor chaired the state<u+2019>s red tape review commission, which mr. bracken credited with eliminating <u+201c>a lot of the regulations that have impeded business growth.<u+201d> <u+201c>she<u+2019>s been great,<u+201d> he said. <u+201c>she<u+2019>s been very attentive to the business community.<u+201d> the lieutenant governor, who told the wall street journal last year that she was <u+201c>thinking about<u+201d> running to succeed mr. christie, has low name recognition statewide. but serving as governor would give her greater exposure and greatly improve her chances of winning the republican nomination and the general election, ms. harrison said. <u+201c>if the governor steps down<u+2026>she will be able to forge her own legacy,<u+201d> she said. mrs. guadagno is the first person to serve as lieutenant governor in new jersey. the position was created through a 2005 ballot referendum held after two governors<u+2014>in a span of less than five years<u+2014>left their posts before the end of their terms. richard codey was unexpectedly thrust into the state<u+2019>s top office in 2004, when democratic gov. jim mcgreevey admitted to an affair and resigned his post. at the time, new jersey<u+2019>s succession plan called for the state senate president to assume the governorship. mr. codey, then the senate president, served as both new jersey<u+2019>s governor and as the state senate president for 14 months. <u+201c>i was scared, i didn<u+2019>t know what to expect,<u+201d> said mr. codey, a democrat who is now a state senator. <u+201c>i had been [in the legislature] a long time, but being in the no. 1 seat is totally different.<u+201d> mr. codey said mrs. guadagno<u+2019>s biggest challenge, should she become governor, will be to forge relationships with state lawmakers to advance her agenda. mrs. guadagno, who became the first female sheriff in monmouth county in 2007, has never served in the state legislature. <u+201c>it<u+2019>s going to be a learning experience and, at the same time, she<u+2019>s going to have to decide whether or not she<u+2019>s going to run,<u+201d> mr. codey said, noting that the filing deadline for the 2017 gubernatorial race is in april. write to kate king at kate.king@wsj.com
chris christie<u+2019>s future shifts spotlight to his lieutenant governor - wsj
kate king