New Jersey Voter Rolls Contain Hundreds of Noncitizens
Documents from at least eight New Jersey counties show noncitizens registered to vote, some of whom later requested removal. The New Jersey Republican Party submitted records requests to all 21 counties and has received partial responses.
The FederalistDocuments reviewed by The Federalist show hundreds of noncitizens registered on voter rolls in at least eight of New Jersey's 21 counties. Some individuals contacted county offices to request removal after discovering they were listed. New Jersey Republican Party Chairwoman Christine Giordano stated that the party filed an Open Public Records Act request with all county commissioners of registration.
Responses remain incomplete from several counties.
Some noncitizens told officials they were registered through the state's Motor Vehicle Commission system despite informing employees they were not citizens. A 2017 Public Interest Legal Foundation report found that checking "yes" on a citizenship question at DMV offices resulted in automatic enrollment without further verification.
One noncitizen removed from the rolls in Atlantic County had voted three times in 2000, three times in 2001, and once in 2008, according to documents. Officials said they would not have identified these cases without self-reporting.
The SAVE America Act would require documentary proof of citizenship for voter registration. On June 4, Sens. Susan Collins, Mitch McConnell, Lisa Murkowski, and Thom Tillis voted against waiving budgetary objections to an amendment on the bill. Noncitizen voting in state and federal elections is illegal and can affect citizenship applications.
New Jersey currently has no statewide method to determine the total number of noncitizens on voter rolls.
