- New Jersey revealed a voter-registration system error affecting approximately six thousand six hundred noncitizens from 2023 to 2024.
- A 2025 USCIS policy initiates deportation proceedings for noncitizens found to have falsely claimed citizenship or voted.
- Federal officials identified over two hundred fifty thousand potential noncitizens on voter rolls across four major states.
New Jersey officials disclosed a voter-registration error that placed approximately 6,600 noncitizens on the state’s voter rolls, raising the risk that lawful immigrants could face immigration enforcement even when they never cast a ballot.
The New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission system made the registrations between June 2023 and June 2024. Preliminary analysis found that fewer than 400 of the affected people actually voted.
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Governor Mikie Sherrill announced the problem on July 21, 2026. She said the affected people had denied being U.S. citizens on an MVC keypad, but the system registered them anyway.
“These individuals answered 'no' when asked on a keypad whether they were a U.S. citizen. but through no fault of their own, the system registered them anyway.”
The disclosure comes as federal officials pursue a broader review of voter rolls. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin warned officials in California, New Jersey, Nevada, and Pennsylvania that more than 250,000 potential noncitizens appeared to be registered across the four states.
Mullin said the review concerned election security.
“Election security is national security. DHS has identified over 250,000 potential non-citizens illegally registered to vote in just 4 U.S. states. Only Americans should be electing American leaders.”
The federal scrutiny creates a particular danger for immigrants seeking a Green Card or U.S. citizenship. A registration record can become evidence in an immigration case, even when a software failure caused the record and no ballot followed.
A 2025 policy directs USCIS toward removal cases
USCIS adopted its current policy through Policy Alert PA-2025-20 on August 29, 2025. The alert, titled “Good Moral Character, Unlawful Voting, and False Claim to U.S. Citizenship in the Naturalization Context,” addresses unlawful voting and false claims of citizenship.
Under the policy, USCIS will issue a Notice to Appear, or NTA, to noncitizens found to have falsely claimed U.S. citizenship or voted unlawfully. An NTA starts deportation proceedings in immigration court.
A registration alone can also affect naturalization. Applicants filing Form N-400 may be found to lack “Good Moral Character” if they registered to vote, even without casting a ballot. The research describes that finding as potentially leading to a permanent bar on naturalization.
The consequences can extend to permanent residents. An NTA can put a person’s immigration status before an immigration court and may lead to the revocation of a lawful permanent resident card.
A separate legal theory presents another hazard. A false claim to U.S. citizenship can make a person inadmissible under immigration law, including when the claim involved an erroneous DMV checkbox. The Immigration and Nationality Act provides almost no legal waiver for that ground.
States face pressure to use the SAVE system
DHS has demanded that states use the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements, known as SAVE, to examine voter rolls. California alone produced as many as 190,832 potential noncitizens for review under the expanded scrutiny.
The federal government’s use of the system has grown since the New Jersey registrations came to light. The Trump administration expanded SAVE for mandatory state audits.
USCIS reported that only 0.03% of records checked through SAVE initially required additional review as of April 2026. That figure describes records run through the system, not a final determination that the people identified were ineligible to vote or had violated immigration law.
The New Jersey review illustrates the distinction. Thousands appeared on voter rolls because of an administrative failure, while preliminary analysis found fewer than 400 ballots cast. Registration and voting therefore remain separate issues in the case.
A federal judge blocked a separate citizenship-registration restriction
The voter-roll dispute coincides with a court fight over how new citizens register after naturalization. On August 3, 2026, U.S. District Judge Adam B. Abelson issued a preliminary injunction against a USCIS rule adopted in August 2025.
That rule had barred nonpartisan organizations, including the League of Women Voters, from registering new citizens at naturalization ceremonies. Abelson found the restriction likely reflected “discriminatory intent” and an “obsessive focus on noncitizen voting.”
The injunction addresses registration assistance at ceremonies, not the New Jersey MVC failure. The cases involve different government actions, but both arise amid intensified federal attention to citizenship claims and voter eligibility.
The USCIS policy manual lists unlawful voting and false claims of citizenship among the issues relevant to naturalization and immigration enforcement. The agency’s policy materials and alerts remain the basis for the current approach.
New Jersey’s announcement identified the mechanics of the failure: people selected “no” when the MVC system asked about citizenship, yet the system created voter registrations between June 2023 and June 2024. That record, rather than a ballot, is what could first draw scrutiny for many of those affected.
