NJ Gov. Mikie Sherrill says 400 noncitizens voted in recent elections

The governor of New Jersey revealed this week that some 6,000 non-citizens were registered to vote in her state and nearly 400 have actually voted illegally in recent elections. This comes as President Donald Trump works to pass election integrity legislation into law. 

In a statement Tuesday, New Jersey’s Democratic Gov. Mikie Sherill announced that “Last week, I learned that a serious software error in New Jersey’s Motor Vehicle System led to the registration of roughly 6,600 people who indicated that they were not U.S. citizens between June 2023 and June 2024, almost three years prior to my taking office.” 

According to Sherrill, “These 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.”

“This happened under the previous administration and, upon learning this information, I immediately ordered my chief counsel to launch an investigation to get to the bottom of what occurred,” she added. “I also ordered the removal of any residents from our voter rolls who were erroneously added between June 2023 and June 2024.”

Along with noting that the vendor responsible for administering the system was being replaced, Sherrill said, "Our preliminary analysis shows fewer than 400 individuals who were newly registered for the first time because of the error voted." She said the group was "registered as Democrats, Republicans and Unaffiliated voters and were scattered across the state," and that there is "no evidence at this time that any elections were swayed" by the erroneous registrations.

“I am appalled by the reckless failures that allowed this to happen and the lack of transparency shown by those in charge at the time,” Sherrill said. “This failure didn’t occur under my watch, but accountability starts now. I am taking action to prevent anything like it from occurring in the future and make sure those responsible are held accountable.”

The error that added 6,600 noncitizens to the voter rolls and enabled 400 of them to vote occurred during the tenure of former Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat who left office earlier this year and was replaced by Sherrill.

Sherrill's announcement came less than a week after Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin sent letters to New Jersey and three other states alleging they could have far more noncitizens on their voter rolls than Sherrill's own review found, including a claim that New Jersey could have as many as 35,152 registered noncitizens. 

Following Sherrill's statement, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon announced the Justice Department is investigating the matter, requesting the full names, dates of birth, nationalities, addresses and registration dates of all 6,600 individuals, along with details on when and where the roughly 400 who voted cast their ballots.

"Ensuring that U.S. citizens' votes are not illegally diluted by noncitizens' votes is of paramount importance," Dhillon wrote. The Trump administration has also sued New Jersey in federal court seeking access to the state's unredacted voter rolls.

White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson pointed to the New Jersey findings as vindication of the administration's broader concerns. "Democrats and their media allies have repeatedly said it is impossible for noncitizens to register to vote, let alone cast a ballot. Time and again, they have been proven wrong," Jackson said.

Sherrill’s announcement about the error comes as Trump is working to ensure the passage of the SAVE America Act, which would require voters to show photo identification and proof of citizenship before voting. 

The implications of what happened in New Jersey on efforts to pass the SAVE Act didn't go unnoticed by Sherrill, who claimed, “As the Trump Administration tries to weaponize elections for political gain, I am ensuring we protect our elections. Let me be clear: Donald Trump has zero credibility on the issue of election integrity.” 

Sherrill maintained that “For more than 10 years, he has worked to undermine Americans’ faith in our elections by spreading lies about legitimate election results, attempting to overturn a free and fair election, encouraging an attack on our Capitol when he couldn’t accept the will of the voters, and defunding election security at the federal level.”

She attempted to assure voters that she took the issue of election integrity seriously. "As a military veteran who swore an oath to defend our Constitution, and as a former federal prosecutor, I believe the integrity of our elections is fundamental to democracy," she said. 

"New Jerseyans should have confidence that every eligible citizen can vote, every lawful vote will be counted, and every reasonable step will be taken to protect the integrity of our elections," she added. "That's my responsibility and it's one I will never stop fighting to uphold."

During a primetime speech focused on election integrity last week that included a push for the passage of the SAVE Act, Trump discussed the release of new documents revealing that what happened in New Jersey isn't an isolated incident. The president mentioned a Department of Homeland Security investigation finding “approximately 278,000 noncitizens who are registered to vote in federal elections.” 

As reflected by Sherrill’s opposition to the legislation, the SAVE Act has become the subject of a partisan divide, with Republicans largely supportive of the measure and Democrats mostly opposing it. The legislation passed the Republican-controlled House of Representatives in a 218-213 vote earlier this year. Only one Democrat broke from his party to support the legislation: Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas.

The SAVE Act has faced a steeper path to passage in the Republican-controlled Senate, where most legislation needs 60 votes to pass. Republicans hold just 53 out of 100 seats in the Senate, meaning that the legislation would need some Democratic support to pass. Earlier this year, the Senate voted 53-47 to advance the SAVE Act, falling short of the 60-vote threshold. 

Republicans in Congress are working to circumvent the 60-vote requirement by including it as part of Reconciliation 3.0, which would enable the legislation to pass using the budget reconciliation process that only requires the support of a simple majority of senators. Efforts to pass Reconciliation 3.0 in both the House and Senate are ongoing, but the measure passed the House Budget Committee 20-14 last week, paving the way for its consideration before the full House.