Who’s in Charge of NJ? Murphy’s on Vacation, Oliver is in Hospital

Senate President Nicholas Scutari is New Jersey's acting governor while Gov. Phil Murphy is out of the country and Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver is hospitalized.

The governor and his family left for a vacation to Italy on Friday, leaving Oliver as the acting governor. She is hospitalized at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston and is unable to carry out her duties, according to a tweet from Mahen Gunaratna, the governor's communications director.

Gunaratna did not disclose the reason for Oliver's hospitalization.

Per the state Constitution, Scutari became acting governor on Monday. Assembly President Craig Coughlin, D-Middlesex, is next in line followed by Attorney General Matt Platkin and Transportation Commissioner Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti.

"We wish the Lieutenant Governor well as she undergoes medical care and will provide updates to the situation as they arise," Gunaratna wrote online.

Scutari last served as acting governor in June 2022 when both Murphy and Oliver were out of town.

Murphy is at his family's 23-room mansion in Parrano, Italy. He is due back in New Jersey on August 13.