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New Jersey has identified what it calls a "serious software error" that automatically registered about 6,600 non-U.S. citizens to vote.
In a statement, Gov. Mikie Sherrill said the error occurred between June 2023 and June 2024, nearly three years before she took office.
"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," she said.
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Sherrill said a preliminary analysis found that fewer than 400 people who were erroneously registered actually voted, noting they included Democrats, Republicans and unaffiliated voters.
Non-U.S. citizens are prohibited from voting in federal elections. Sherrill said she ordered their removal from the state's voter rolls.
"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," she 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."
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Election integrity has been a major focus for President Donald Trump. He has repeatedly called on Congress to pass the SAVE America Act, which would require documentary proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote in federal elections and show voter identification at polling places.
Sherrill appeared to anticipate criticism from Trump over the incident.
"Let me be clear: Donald Trump has zero credibility on the issue of election integrity," she said. "For more than ten 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."
