The New Jersey Attorney General's Office has requested paper voter registration records from Monmouth County, expanding an investigation into how thousands of noncitizens were added to state voter rolls.
State law enforcement asked election officials for paper applications submitted from 2022 through 2024, following disclosures that noncitizens registered through paper forms beyond the motor voter system.
Scope of the Investigation
Investigators are evaluating whether voter registration errors extended beyond a software defect involving contractor Idemia.
That glitch mistakenly registered roughly 6,600 noncitizens between June 2023 and June 2024, leading to fewer than 400 casting ballots in subsequent elections.
Republican officials noted that public records revealed noncitizens registered outside the state's initial timeline, including instances dating back to 2000.
GOP lawmakers are demanding a suspension of the automatic motor voter program alongside a formal legislative inquiry.
Governor Mikie Sherrill initially attributed the errors to a software glitch at the Motor Vehicle Commission. She defended her administration's actions, stating an independent state inquiry remains underway.
“It is not a surprise...
the Trump administration wants to immediately weaponize this against people as opposed to focusing on making sure we're running free and fair elections,” Sherrill said.
Federal Response
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon accused state leadership of dismissing federal warnings while failing to secure election integrity.
She criticized the governor for dismissing President Donald Trump's claims regarding noncitizen registration before official data releases validated potential vulnerabilities.
“She knew it, and she still went online and called the president a liar and said he was exaggerating – Shame on you, governor,” Dhillon said.
Federal authorities warned that states refusing voluntary compliance face potential litigation to enforce data sharing mandates. “It's a bipartisan problem, actually.
And I'm really looking forward to helping everyone who will work with us fix this problem.
And if they won't work with, we'll sue them and we'll still fix the problem,” Dhillon added.
Justice Department representatives emphasized that illegal votes disenfranchise legitimate voters across the state.
“Every single person who voted illegally canceled out the vote of a New Jersey voter; that is shameful,” Dhillon said.
In response, Democratic governors issued a joint statement defending election security across state jurisdictions.
“It's deeply alarming that President Trump continues to try to undermine free and fair elections.
No amount of lies and conspiracy theories can change the fact that our country's elections have repeatedly been proven to be safe and secure,” read the statement led by Kentucky Governor Andrew Beshear.
Spokesperson Sean Higgins reaffirmed that state officials will utilize legal measures to prevent unauthorized sharing of residents' sensitive voter details with federal agencies.
“The Trump administration has a long history of weaponizing the Justice Department for political purposes and attempting to overturn election results.
Governor Sherrill has been clear that she will use all the legal tools available to her to protect New Jerseyans' personal information,” Higgins said.
President Trump highlighted the New Jersey registrations to urge passage of the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act before Congress' summer recess.
“Republicans, get smart and straighten out our Crooked Elections!” Trump wrote.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt urged the Senate to mandate voter identification and national citizenship checks for registration.
“[Sherill] says it's 6,600; we suspect it's a heck of a lot more, not just in New Jersey, but in states across the country.
The president is hellbent on getting to the bottom of this,” Leavitt said.
Vice President JD Vance called on Senate Democrats to back federal legislation preventing automatic registration errors.
“If only there were a way to stop this type of 'software error' that allowed non-citizens to vote in our elections,” Vance wrote.
Congressional Democratic leaders rejected the proposed legislation, arguing it disenfranchises legitimate voters who lack immediate access to citizenship documents.
“Donald, when it comes to the SAVE Act, the courts have rejected it, Congress has rejected it, even members of your own party have rejected it.
The SAVE Act isn't going anywhere,” said Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer.
State records show technology vendor Idemia holds three contracts with New Jersey totaling $61.1 million, including driver's license services and state police fingerprinting.
State officials have initiated steps to terminate Idemia's motor vehicle contract, while federal lawmakers have called for comprehensive audits of the company's federal identity contracts.
Former Governor Phil Murphy's office stated he was unaware of the motor vehicle registration system errors prior to disclosures by the current administration.
The Department of Justice's deadline for New Jersey to provide detailed voter records expires this week.
