About 6,600 noncitizens were mistakenly registered to vote in New Jersey between June 2023 and June 2024, caused by a software error in the state's Motor Vehicle System, officials said [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. The issue arose when individuals answered "no" to a citizenship question on a keypad while applying for driver's licenses or IDs, but the system nevertheless registered them to vote [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. Approximately 400 of those improperly registered cast ballots in elections during that period [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
Governor Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat, ordered the removal of these noncitizens from the voter rolls and opened an investigation after discovering the problem in July 2026. She said, "These individuals answered 'no' when asked on a keypad whether they were a U.S. citizen, but through no fault of their own, the system registered them anyway," expressing outrage over the failures that allowed the issue to occur under the previous administration of Governor Phil Murphy [2, 4]. She added, "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. This failure didn't occur under my watch, but accountability starts now" [2].
The voter registrations affected Democrats, Republicans, and unaffiliated voters across New Jersey, showing no partisan pattern [2, 3, 4]. Republican officials condemned the situation, calling for an end to automatic voter registration through the Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) and demanding a thorough review of all registrations issued through the system. Republican Senator Declan O'Scanlon said, "It happened, and it’s worse than anyone expected... we should be reviewing every registration processed through the MVC over the last decade" [4, 5]. A White House spokesperson cited the incident to stress the importance of election integrity legislation [2].
The MVC is replacing its previous vendor, IDEMIA, with a new provider to fix the system. IDEMIA disputed blame for the error, stating its role was limited to transmitting information through the motor vehicle system and not controlling voter registration [2, 5]. In contrast, Sherrill and other officials blame IDEMIA and the MVC for releasing software with a significant glitch and for delays in addressing it [1, 2, 3, 4].
The improper registrations and voting occurred under former Governor Phil Murphy's administration, while current action has focused on rectifying the rolls and preventing future problems [2, 3, 4, 5]. The investigation into how the error occurred and who is responsible remains ongoing, with the state taking steps to ensure accuracy in voter rolls going forward [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
