Political Turmoil Over Non-Citizen Voter Registrations in New Jersey

In a curious twist that feels a bit like Schrödinger’s cat, the number of non-citizen voters in New Jersey seems to vary significantly—between 6,600 and 35,152. This disarray has stirred up both accidental mishaps and scandal.

On Tuesday, New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill (D) weighed in, asserting that around 6,600 non-citizens had been erroneously included in the state’s voter rolls, yet only fewer than 400 of those actually cast ballots from June 2023 to June 2024.

“These were just caught.”

Per Cheryl’s account, people were directly asked through keypads whether they were U.S. citizens, and many replied “no.” Despite this, the system allowed their registration to go through.

Sherrill attributed the issue to a “substantial software error” within the motor vehicle commission’s system, claiming this problem stretches back to the tenure of his predecessor, Democrat Phil Murphy.

After discovering the situation last week, Sherrill initiated an investigation, ordered the removal of these incorrect registrations, and opted to change the vendor responsible for managing the system.

The Department of Justice announced it, too, is looking into this matter.

Related: Trump illuminated the flaws in our election process. The media affirmed his concerns.

Interestingly, IDEMIA, a French company that has been associated with the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission for over 40 years, clarified that its role is primarily to transmit registration data. They emphasized that the information is subject to verification by the Department of Elections.

The lower figure of 6,600 contrasts sharply with the 35,152 non-citizen voters identified by the Department of Homeland Security last week. This figure was also referenced by President Trump, who claimed that New Jersey, California, Nevada, and Pennsylvania collectively have around 250,000 non-citizens registered.

Sherrill has yet to address the discrepancy between his numbers and those reported by DHS, suggesting that Trump is attempting to politicize the issue for gain. “Let me be clear: Donald Trump lacks credibility on matters of election integrity,” he remarked.

On his part, Trump focused on the number 35,152 in a social media post, implying that these newly identified registrants were “just caught” and predicted that the real tally would be much higher. He posited that all these registrants are Democrats and urged Republicans to advocate for the “SAVE America Act,” aimed at reforming election rules.

During a segment on CNN, Jake Tapper commented that these revelations are not favorable for Democrats’ assertions that illegal voter registrations by immigrants are nonexistent. This has resurfaced the argument concerning the seriousness of election security, with Tapper noting that while it happens, it’s usually in very small numbers, implying it is not an alarming threat.

Sherrill mentioned that the 400 fraudulent voters included Democrats, Republicans, and independents, scattered across the state. Yet, like the initial number, these claims come solely from his estimates.