New Jersey says software error registered about 6,600 noncitizens to vote and led fewer than 400 to cast ballots
The Facts
- Gov. Mikie Sherrill said a software error in New Jersey’s motor vehicle system led to about 6,600 noncitizens being registered to vote.
- The error occurred between June 2023 and June 2024, according to the governor.
- The affected people had indicated they were not U.S. citizens when applying for driver’s licenses or state identification cards, but were registered to vote anyway.
- A preliminary analysis found that fewer than 400 of the people improperly registered through the error went on to cast ballots.
- Sherrill said the affected registrations included Democrats, Republicans and unaffiliated voters across the state.
- New Jersey said it is removing the erroneous registrations from the voter rolls.
- The disclosure has become part of a wider national debate over noncitizen voting as President Donald Trump and his allies push for stricter proof-of-citizenship voting rules.
- It remains unresolved which specific elections the improperly registered voters participated in, though Sherrill said there was no evidence at this time that any election outcomes were changed.
Context
How did the registration error happen?
According to Sherrill, the problem was a software error in New Jersey’s Motor Vehicle Commission system. People applying for driver’s licenses or ID cards indicated that they were not U.S. citizens, but the system registered them to vote anyway NYT,ABC7 New York,Independent.
How many people voted because of the error?
The governor said a preliminary analysis found that fewer than 400 of the roughly 6,600 people improperly registered through the error cast ballots in elections since 2023 POLITICO,Investing.com,CBS News.
What is the state doing now?
New Jersey officials said they are removing the erroneous registrations from the voter rolls, and Sherrill said the issue prompted an investigation after she learned of it last week WSJ,CBS News,Investing.com.
Where Left and Right agree, and where they split
- Where Left and Right agree
- People who said they were not U.S. citizens were wrongly registered through a state error, and those registrations now need to be removed and prevented.
- Where Left and Right split
- Whether the story is about keeping a limited administrative failure in proportion, or about treating any noncitizen ballots as proof verification must come first.
How left and right read it
What stands out here is a real administrative failure, but also how narrow and nonpartisan the actual voting impact appears: fewer than 400 ballots, spread across Democrats, Republicans, and unaffiliated voters, with no evidence that outcomes changed. That matters because a fixable software error is now being folded into a national push for stricter citizenship rules, even as the state removes the bad registrations from the rolls.
“The stunning announcement comes amid a push by President Donald Trump's administration to crack down on non-citizen voting, which the president claims -- frequently without factual basis -- aids Democrats in elections.” — POLITICO
What matters here is not partisan advantage but basic rule-following: people who said they were not U.S. citizens were still registered to vote, and some went on to cast ballots. When a motor vehicle system can do that for about 6,600 people over a year, it underscores why election administration has to put verification and clean voter rolls ahead of automatic inclusion.
“After all, New Jersey is one of those states that basically tries to register every warm body that walks into any government office: The emphasis is on "inclusion," not "security."” — New York Post
The receipts — all 100 sources
Wire services (4)
Independent coverage (50)
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