Software glitch allowed nearly 400 non-US citizens to vote in NJ, Gov. Sherrill says

Nearly 400 noncitizens voted in New Jersey elections after a software glitch caused more than 6,000 noncitizens to be registered to vote in New Jersey over the course of a year, Gov. Mikie Sherrill said Tuesday.

Sherrill said those people were registered as Democrats, Republicans and unaffiliated voters across the Garden State.

Sherrill said the registrations were the result of an error within software used by the state’s Motor Vehicle Commission’s system that registers residents to vote when they apply for driver's licenses and identification cards. Between June 2023 and June 2024, roughly 6,600 applicants indicated “no” on keypads at MVC offices when asked if they were American citizens. The software registered them to vote anyway.

Sherrill said the glitch was fixed in June 2024, but she didn’t learn of the situation until last week. State election officials are working to remove anyone illegally registered from New Jersey’s voter rolls. The MVC is moving to replace the vendor responsible for the problem software, and an investigation is underway into how the situation was handled, she said.

“ This failure didn't occur under my watch, but accountability starts now because the people of New Jersey shouldn't have to wait a year for a problem to get solved or two years to learn it even happened,” Sherrill said.

Sherrill said the investigation will determine which elections were affected by the improper registrations, and those findings will be publicly released.

“ We have no evidence at this time that any elections were swayed,” Sherrill said.

Sherrill blasted former Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration for its handling of the problem.

“ This entire situation is unacceptable,” Sherrill said. “It's unacceptable that the vendor released software with such a glaring error. It's unacceptable that the MVC took a year to get this issue fixed, and it's unacceptable that no one in the previous administration brought this to light, demanded accountability, or took action when it happened years ago.”

A spokesperson for Murphy did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The news comes as President Donald Trump is pushing for more federal control over elections before the November Midterms. Trump frequently cites cases of alleged voter fraud and touts conspiracy theories about electoral integrity to make his argument, including in a nationally broadcast primetime speech last week.

Abigail Jackson, a White House spokesperson, said the New Jersey situation bolsters Trump’s case for the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act. If passed by Congress, it would require anyone registering to vote to provide proof of citizenship, such as a passport or birth certificate. Photo identification would also be required before casting a ballot. .

“American voters deserve to have confidence that our elections are safe and secure,” Jackson said. “President Trump will never stop fighting to make that happen and all patriotic Americans should join in his effort.”

Democrats have opposed the legislation over fears it will suppress voter turnout and disenfranchise eligible voters who lack passports, birth certificates and other forms of identification.

“ As the Trump administration tries to weaponize elections for political gain, I am ensuring that we protect our elections,” Sherrill said. “Let me be clear, Donald Trump has zero credibility on the issue of election integrity.”

Since 2019, New Jerseyans have been automatically registered to vote through the MVC, under a law signed that year by Murphy.

Republican state lawmakers in New Jersey have proposed legislation that would only allow people to register to vote or update their voter registration through the MVC if they can show proof of citizenship.

“I have been warning Trenton Democrats since this was signed into law in 2019 that New Jersey needed stronger safeguards to protect the integrity of our elections,” said state Sen. Kristin Corrado, a Republican representing suburban parts of Passaic, Bergen and Essex counties. Corrado is sponsoring bills to change how the MVC handles voter registration. “Democrats wrote this law, Democrats implemented this process, and Democrats failed to fix the obvious problems that followed.”