State officials have uncovered additional problems with the state’s voter registration system at the state Motor Vehicles Commission, saying another 750 individuals have been identified as being wrongly registered to vote.
In a release this week, Gov. Mikie Sherrill said that a state review found additional records in which people answered “no” to an age-eligibility question, but their voter registrations were still processed. The state has determined those registrations were not legally valid.
The revelations come months after the state disclosed a separate problem involving the same software. Over a one-year period, more than 6,000 people who had identified themselves as non-citizens were still added to the voter rolls. Fewer than 400 of those individuals ultimately cast ballots.
With just weeks to the midterm elections, the state’s top Republican demanded more transparency and further investigation into how the errors happened.
“You can’t go through this process and only release information through press releases,” said state Senate Republican Leader Anthony Bucco.
In the release this week, Sherrill broke down the latest findings:
Approximately 380 individuals had no other registrations, did not vote, and are being placed in deleted status.
Approximately 320 have other potentially valid registrations, voted, and are being referred to counties for further review.
Approximately 50 were registered solely as the result of the error and voted. These records are being placed in deleted status and being referred to the counties for review.
A second issue involves roughly 340 potentially improper registrations connected to the MVC's re-entry program for former inmates.
This program is a partnership between the MVC and the New Jersey Reentry Corporation, providing licensing and identification services to those transitioning from prison or addiction treatment programs.
According to those findings:
Approximately 340 individuals were improperly registered at the time and require individual review to determine whether deletion is appropriate.
Separately, approximately 60 individuals were identified as currently incarcerated. The counties have a routine list-maintenance process that identifies and flags currently incarcerated individuals for deletion. These names are being sent to the counties for remediation.
Bucco said the state needs to provide more information about how and when the problems occurred. “It’s really time that we truly get transparent and release the portions of the report that is being conducted,” Bucco said.
The Sherrill administration said it is moving away from the current software system at MVC offices and adding safeguards to prevent similar problems. Among the reforms is a daily audit designed to ensure voter registration records match customers’ responses during the MVC registration process.
The state also plans to make the voter registration process clearer, including expanded language and translation assistance.
Bucco said the daily audit is a step in the right direction but argued additional changes are needed. He is pushing legislation that he says would make registration more secure.
“It would accomplish three things,” he said. “One, by law, requires that audit. Two, would implement voter identification, and three, would completely eliminate the automatic voter registration at motor vehicles [offices].”