Trump seizes on New Jersey election error to boost misleading fraud claims

Key Points:

• New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill revealed that 6,600 noncitizens were mistakenly registered to vote due to a software error, with fewer than 400 casting ballots; this represents a tiny fraction of the state's 6.6 million registered voters.
• Former President Donald Trump and allies amplified the issue, falsely claiming much higher numbers of noncitizens on voter rolls and using it to allege widespread voter fraud benefiting Democrats, despite evidence to the contrary.
• The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) cited a possible 278,000 noncitizens on voter rolls across four states but provided no clear methodology or detailed evidence, leading experts to question the credibility of the figures.
• Election experts emphasize that such registration errors are rare, minimal in impact, and states are best equipped to detect and correct them, dismissing claims of widespread fraud as misleading and politically motivated.
• The controversy arises amid Republican efforts to impose stricter voter ID laws and amid ongoing attempts to undermine confidence in the US election system ahead of the 2024 midterm elections.