The U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division has opened an investigation after New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat, admitted that thousands oof non-citizens were registered to vote in the state due to an “error.” Hundreds of these non-citizens were further confirmed to have voted in federal elections.
Sherrill publicly acknowledged that a software error at the state’s Motor Vehicle Commission resulted in the erroneous registration of approximately 6,600 non-citizens on the state’s voter rolls. The registrations occurred between June 2023 and June 2024.
Individuals applying for driver’s licenses or state identification cards correctly indicated through a keypad prompt that they were not U.S. citizens, but the system still added them to the voter rolls, the governor said.
Sherrill stated that a little less than 400 of these non-citizens cast ballots in elections since 2023. The individuals who voted were registered across party affiliations, including Democrats, Republicans, and unaffiliated voters, and were located in various parts of the state.
The governor attributed the issue to a software glitch involving the vendor IDEMIA during the period of automatic voter registration tied to motor vehicle transactions. New Jersey is among the states that use such systems, where applicants bear responsibility for accurately responding to eligibility questions.
Sherrill attempted to shift blame to her predecessor, Phil Murphy, by stating that the issue was discovered within the past week. She further claimed that no elections were swayed by the error, and emphasized that it occurred before she took office.
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“It’s unacceptable that no one in the previous administration brought this to light, demanded accountability, or took action when it happened years ago,” 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.”
In direct response to the governor’s announcement, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division opened an investigation into the matter. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, who leads the division, issued a statement addressing the registrations and votes.
“Today, NJ Gov. Sherrill stated that 400 non-citizens voted in elections. This is unacceptable and illegal! The Civil Rights Division at the Justice Department is investigating this unlawful dilution of American votes,” she said.
“Earlier today you represented that approximately 6,600 people who self-identified as noncitizens between June 2023 and June 2024 were nevertheless registered to vote in New Jersey. Indeed, approximately 400 of those individuals voted,” Dhillon added. “Ensuring that U.S. citizens’ votes are not illegally diluted by noncitizens’ votes is of paramount importance.”
The investigation includes requests for detailed records, such as the state’s voter rolls and information related to the approximately 6,600 registrations and the roughly 400 votes cast.
This action aligns with prior DOJ efforts under Dhillon. This past February, the department sued New Jersey and several other states for failing to produce complete voter registration lists upon request as part of oversight of voter eligibility compliance.
Then, earlier this month, Dhillon sent letters to election officials in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Those letters reminded officials of federal requirements to maintain accurate voter rolls and warned that election officers who knowingly retain non-citizens on statewide voter registration lists or facilitate non-citizen voting could face criminal liability under relevant federal statutes. The letters also offered assistance to states in achieving compliance.
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[ H/T Trending Politics ]
