Election officials in several states are stepping up reviews of voter registration systems ahead of the November midterms as documented enrollment errors involving noncitizens intensify a broader dispute between the Trump administration and state governments over voter roll access and election safeguards.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
State election officials are increasing scrutiny of voter rolls and automatic registration systems ahead of the midterm elections after new disclosures involving noncitizen registrations added momentum to President Donald Trump’s election integrity push.
The most recent controversy emerged in New Jersey, where Democratic Gov. Mikie Sherrill said a software error caused approximately 6,600 people who identified themselves as noncitizens to be registered to vote between June 2023 and June 2024.
Fewer than 400 of those individuals later cast ballots, according to Sherrill. She ordered the affected registrations removed and opened an investigation into how the problem occurred.
The disclosure has prompted renewed attention to automatic voter registration systems administered through state motor vehicle agencies, which have been linked to several recent registration failures, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Oregon officials previously acknowledged that 1,945 people had been registered without proof of eligibility, including some noncitizens. Of that group, 44 cast ballots.
Those cases have become part of a broader national dispute over how states identify and remove potentially ineligible voters.
The Trump administration says more than 250,000 possible noncitizens are registered to vote across New Jersey, Nevada, Pennsylvania and California.
Officials in those states have challenged that claim, saying the federal government has not supplied enough information to substantiate the figure.
Trump has directed the Department of Homeland Security to notify states when federal officials identify suspected noncitizen registrations.
The Justice Department has separately sued states in an effort to obtain unredacted voter registration lists.
“We’ve put these governors on notice,” DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said, according to the Journal. “States must work with us to ensure free, fair, and honest elections.”
The administration’s legal campaign has encountered repeated setbacks.
The Justice Department has suffered 21 courtroom defeats this year in cases seeking voter roll records, although appeals remain pending.
Despite those losses, the New Jersey registration error has strengthened Republican arguments that states need tighter safeguards for maintaining voter lists and verifying eligibility.
Election administrators from both parties are taking additional steps.
Pennsylvania retested its automatic voter registration system following the New Jersey disclosure.
Georgia Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has also conducted multiple audits designed to determine whether noncitizens have been added to the state’s voter rolls.
The issue is likely to remain politically significant as the November elections approach, particularly with control of Congress potentially determined by a small number of closely contested races.
Even registration errors involving relatively small numbers of voters could become major points of dispute if margins are narrow.
“Election integrity requires constant vigilance,” Pennsylvania Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt, a Republican, told the Journal.
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