Sussex County Commissioners pass election integrity resolution

Following Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s revelation that thousands of ineligible voters were registered to vote at Motor Vehicle Commission locations between June 2023 and June 2024, the Sussex County Board of County Commissioners passed a resolution calling on Sherrill to conduct a full, independent and transparent investigation into the matter.

‘The people of New Jersey deserve to know’

A portion of the resolution, passed at a July 29 special meeting, reads:

“On July 21, the Gov. Mikie Sherrill announced that approximately 6,600 individuals who had indicated that they were not United States citizens were improperly registered to vote as a result of a software error.

“Gov. Sherrill further stated that a review found fewer than 400 of the individuals newly registered as a result of the error subsequently cast ballots.

“Regardless of whether any individual election was ultimately determined to have been affected, the improper registration of individuals who are not eligible to vote raises serious concerns regarding the accuracy, security, oversight and integrity of New Jersey’s voter registration system.

“The public deserves a complete accounting of how this error occurred, how long it remained undetected, what safeguards failed and what steps will be taken to ensure that a similar failure cannot occur again.

“The people of New Jersey deserve to know in which counties and jurisdictions the affected individuals were registered, in which elections those ballots were cast and whether any races or election outcomes may have been affected by those ballots....”

The resolution also calls on the governor to cooperate with federal officials who are also investigating this matter as well as other irregularities with elections in New Jersey.

‘A serious software error’

Sherrill, who set up a legal defense fund shielding erroneously registered voters from any federal inquiry, said her administration has taken steps to address the issue.

“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 in a July 21 press release. “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.”

Sherrill added that she ordered her chief counsel to launch an investigation as well as the removal of any residents erroneously added between June 2023 and June 2024. The new Motor Vehicle Commission administrator that I appointed has begun the process of replacing the vendor responsible for administering the system.

‘Something other than a glitch’

County Commissioner Chris Carney said residents in Sussex and statewide deserve a full accounting of the voting process.

“I think this was something other than just a glitch and that is why the state needs a transparent investigation conducted by a third party,” he said. “Since illegal aliens can get licenses in New Jersey and people have been registering to vote at the MVC for years – not just the one-year period cited – it seems to me this is an opportunity for all of us to see what the situation is. Plus, one illegal vote is one too many because it doesn’t take much to overturn a local council. In Hopatcong, there was a recent election decided by two votes.”

Democrats: Nothing more than grandstanding

Sussex Democrats criticized the resolution passed by the all-Republican Sussex County Board of County Commissioners.

“The tradition of Sussex County commissioners wasting taxpayers’ time and money with frivolous, symbolic resolutions is alive and well,” said Sussex County Democratic Committee Chairwoman Zoe Heath. “Calling an unnecessary special meeting to grandstand about ‘election integrity’ is nothing more than a ploy to bolster the commissioner’s stock with elite party insiders who never have the best interests of Sussex County at heart. The commissioners should redirect the time and energy they dedicate pledging fealty to the federal government into actually focusing on Sussex County.”

An email to the Motor Vehicle Commission press secretary went unanswered by deadline.