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NJ software error
New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill said a “serious software error” in the state’s Motor Vehicle System led to the registration of roughly 6,600 people who indicated they were not U.S. citizens between June 2023 and June 2024, and she said fewer than 400 were found to have actually voted.
“New Jersey accidentally registered 6,600 noncitizens to vote years ago, governor says The governor cited a "serious software error" for the incorrect registrations”
Sherrill said those individuals answered “no” when asked on a keypad whether they were a U.S. citizen when applying for drivers’ licenses and identification cards, but “through no fault of their own, the system registered them anyway.”
The disclosure came after Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin sent letters to New Jersey and three other states alleging those states might have tens of thousands of noncitizens registered to vote, with Mullin and DHS alleging New Jersey could have “as many as ... 35,152 non-citizens registered to vote in New Jersey.”
The Department of Justice said Tuesday it is investigating the matter, and Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon wrote to Sherrill that “Ensuring that U.S. citizens' votes are not illegally diluted by noncitizens votes is of paramount importance.”
Political fight over meaning
CNN said Sherrill’s disclosure that a software glitch mistakenly added 6,600 noncitizens to New Jersey’s voter rolls and that about 400 improperly voted has given Republicans “something to grab onto” in their campaign against non-citizen voting.
CNN also framed the episode as something that “doesn’t neatly fit into Republicans’ campaign for tighter voter restrictions,” noting Sherrill said the roughly 400 votes were cast since 2023 and that they were “registered as Democrats, Republicans and unaffiliated voters and were scattered across the state.”
Sherrill pushed back on any insinuation that her findings validate claims by the Trump administration, telling reporters, “Let me be clear: Donald Trump has zero credibility on the issue of election integrity.”
The Hill reported that White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said the New Jersey error reveals the “absolute necessity” for Congress to pass the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act, which would require proof of citizenship for voter registration among other restrictions.
What happens next
Sherrill said she ordered an independent investigation, the removal of any New Jersey residents from the state’s voter rolls who should not have been registered, and that the new administrator of New Jersey’s Motor Vehicle Commission is starting to replace the vendor tasked with running the faulty system.
In a statement, IDEMIA said it “works with the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, and has for more than 40 years” to support the process by which eligible individuals may indicate their interest in registering to vote when applying for or renewing a driver’s license or state-issued identification card.
Fox News reported that Deputy Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon reaffirmed the Department of Justice’s demand that New Jersey provide voter rolls data, and Dhillon wrote that “That is why we are writing to formally request more information that will allow us to assess whether New Jersey complies with several federal laws.”
The Hill said Sherrill wrote that she was “appalled by the reckless failures that allowed this to happen and the lack of transparency shown by those in charge at the time,” and she said she “immediately” launched an investigation after she was notified last week.
