A dispute has emerged over the registration of approximately 6,600 noncitizens in New Jersey, with the software vendor IDEMIA asserting that state officials knowingly approved these individuals for voter rolls. This comes after New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill initially blamed a software error by the French tech company for the mishap, which allegedly led to around 400 noncitizens casting ballots.
IDEMIA stated that the data submitted to the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission and the Division of Elections accurately reflected that these individuals indicated they were not U.S. citizens while registering for identification cards and expressing a desire to vote. According to IDEMIA, the system specifications set by the state allowed for this information to be recorded and transmitted. "At no point was a noncitizen ever marked as a citizen in the database," an IDEMIA spokesperson said.
The vendor's claims raise questions about the state's screening processes for voter registration applications submitted through the Motor Vehicle System. It remains unclear whether New Jersey had safeguards to identify or reject registrations from individuals who indicated they were not U.S. citizens, or if they made errors in the vetting process.
A New Jersey state official disputed IDEMIA's account, telling The Post, "Anytime somebody answers 'no' to the citizenship question, that record should not be transmitted to the Division of Elections." The issue reportedly occurred under the administration of former Gov. Phil Murphy, Sherrill's predecessor. The state has since commissioned an external investigation by CSG.
IDEMIA further suggested that the data provided to the Division of Elections may have lacked crucial information, such as party affiliation, which could have been necessary for proper voter registration.
The situation has drawn national attention, with former President Trump and his allies citing it as an example of potential election vulnerabilities. Trump has been advocating for measures like the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act, which would mandate proof of citizenship for voting.
Following Governor Sherrill's announcement, the Department of Justice requested key data from New Jersey related to the erroneous registrations, including the names of those improperly added to voter rolls. The DOJ also referenced the incident in a lawsuit against the state seeking access to its voter roll data. A spokesperson for Governor Sherrill criticized the Justice Department's actions as politically motivated.
Separately, U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) has called for investigations into federal contracts with IDEMIA, noting the company's role in managing systems like TSA PreCheck and driver's license programs across numerous states.