The special election for Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill’s House seat already features a ten-person Democratic primary field, but another candidate is on the way – one who comes from well outside the world of elected politics.
Zach Beecher, a venture capitalist and former Army paratrooper, is planning on running to succeed Sherrill, the New Jersey Globe has learned. A formal campaign announcement is set to come soon.
The 34-year-old Beecher was raised in Morris County; his father is a retired Mount Olive police officer who served as the town’s police chief, and his mother works at a nonprofit for victims of child abuse. After graduating from Princeton University, Beecher joined the U.S. Army and became a paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne Division, where he “led combat logistics advisory for supported Iraqi forces during Operation Inherent Resolve,” per his professional bio, and earned a Bronze Star.
Upon leaving active duty with the rank of captain, Beecher entered the world of venture capital, and is currently a partner at Scout Ventures, a national security-focused firm. He also remains a member of the U.S. Army Reserve with Special Operations Command Europe, and is now a major.
Beecher starts out as a political unknown in the 11th district, but the same thing was true of Sherrill when she announced her first congressional campaign in 2017. A former Navy helicopter pilot and federal prosecutor, Sherrill quickly wowed the New Jersey political world with her life story, eventually boxing most of her would-be Democratic opponents out of the race and flipping what was then a Republican-held seat by 14 points.
Now that Sherrill is headed to the governor’s office, her successor will be determined via special election, with the Democratic primary likely arriving in late January or early February. Ten other Democrats are already running; one of them, Chatham Borough Councilman Justin Strickland, is also a U.S. Army veteran.
