IDEMIA, the identity verification vendor for the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, has rejected claims made by Governor Mikie Sherrill that a software error led to the registration of thousands of noncitizens on the state's voter rolls. Instead, IDEMIA stated that the issue stemmed from state officials' handling of noncitizen data sent to the Division of Elections.
The company, which specializes in technology for issuing identity documents and managing secure payments, asserted that its voter registration system was functioning correctly and had received state approval prior to implementation. IDEMIA indicated that the responsibility for validating voter eligibility ultimately lies with state officials.
This dispute follows the New Jersey disclosure that approximately 6,600 noncitizens were mistakenly registered to vote through the automatic voter registration system between June 2023 and July 2024. State officials reported that about 400 of these individuals cast ballots, but maintained that there is no evidence suggesting the registrations influenced any election outcomes.
Lisa Shoemaker, IDEMIA's senior vice president of global corporate relations, stated that all individuals in question had indicated their noncitizen status during the registration process. She emphasized that this information was correctly recorded and accessible to the Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC).
In June 2024, MVC requested a system modification to ensure that applicants identifying as noncitizens would automatically decline voter registration. IDEMIA noted that while this change would prevent future registrations, the 6,600 individuals added before the update were not removed or disclosed until recently.
Governor Sherrill has continued to criticize IDEMIA and former Governor Phil Murphy for their roles in the situation, describing the MVC as disorganized and attributing significant issues to IDEMIA. The Trump administration has cited New Jersey as a case for implementing stricter election safeguards, including citizenship verification. Recently, the Department of Justice instructed New Jersey to provide information on the affected individuals within five business days, a move Sherrill has opposed, alleging potential misuse of the data by the DOJ.