House Republicans confront NJ governor over 6,600 noncitizens registered to vote in alleged software failure

Nineteen House Republicans are demanding answers from New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill on how approximately 6,600 self-identified noncitizens were registered to vote and cast 400 ballots in what the state described as a software failure.

The group put the question to Sherrill in a letter published on Friday afternoon.

"Despite those answers, a software failure reportedly transmitted their information for voter registration between June 2023 and June 2024. This was not a minor clerical discrepancy," the group wrote in the letter. "It was a catastrophic breakdown of the most basic safeguard in our election system: ensuring that only eligible American citizens are registered and permitted to vote. How do you know this was just a software glitch and not a nefarious act?"

The letter continues to underscore Republican-led concerns that lawmakers are inviting election security liabilities without passing legislation to shore up voter identification and implement federal standards to ensure proof of citizenship.

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Its signatories included Rep. Jefferson Van Drew, R-N.J., and Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., two of New Jersey’s three Republican congressmen.

Notably, the third, Rep. Tom Kean Jr., R-N.J., did not join.

The system failure originally came to the public’s attention when Sherrill disclosed the issue in an announcement on Tuesday.

"Last week I learned that a serious software error in New Jersey’s Motor Vehicle System led to the registration of roughly 6,600 people who indicated that they were not U.S. citizens between June 2023 and June 2024, almost three years prior to my taking office," Sherrill said.

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"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."

Republicans in their letter listed a series of questions they said the state should answer, including what testing it normally conducts for voter roll maintenance, the specific counties where the improper ballots were cast, and whether Sherrill’s administration would support voter-ID legislation.

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"Republicans have been sounding the alarm for years about weaknesses in voter-registration systems, inadequate voter-roll maintenance, and the danger that noncitizens may be registered and permitted to vote in national elections, which is illegal under federal law," the letter stated.

The group has requested a response to its questions no later than Aug. 21, 2026.