After New Jersey Democrat Gov. Mikie Sherrill revealed that 6,600 noncitizens were accidentally registered to vote in the Garden State, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt urged Congress to pass the SAVE America Act to prevent such instances from occurring in the future.

“It is completely unacceptable to have noncitizens on American voter rolls voting in U.S. elections, and she says at 6,600—we suspect it’s a heck of a lot more, not just in New Jersey, but in states across the country,” Leavitt said in response to a question from the Daily Signal.

“The president is hell-bent on getting to the bottom of this,” she added, “and it’s also why we need to pass the SAVE America Act to ensure that only U.S. citizens are voting in U.S. elections.”

The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and a photo ID to vote.

Sherrill said Tuesday that more than 6,000 noncitizens were mistakenly added to New Jersey’s voter registration rolls between June 2023 and June 2024. Roughly 400 of those noncitizens voted.

Leavitt said it’s “no coincidence” that Sherrill “all of a sudden decided to put out a press release saying President Trump and Republicans have been right about noncitizens on our voter rolls.”

“I think this governor is saying this because she realizes this administration is serious about getting to the bottom of illegal aliens voting and being on our voting voter rolls in our country,” Leavitt said.

Sherrill’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Signal.

Last week, Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin sent letters to election officials in four states, including New Jersey, warning them about noncitizens on their voter rolls.

“That’s why all of a sudden she is speaking the truth about the fact that this does take place in states across the country,” Leavitt said.

Leavitt praised the House for passing the budget resolution on Wednesday, which included “as much of the SAVE America Act as possible.” The $95 billion framework would provide new spending for the military, intelligence, and agriculture and included provisions of the SAVE America Act.

“We encourage the Senate to move forward with passing that resolution into law, so the president can sign it into law by the August recess,” Leavitt said. “It’s of the utmost importance to this president, but also to the American people who support this bill overwhelmingly.”

AUTHOR

Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell

Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell is the White House correspondent for the Daily Signal. Follow on X TheElizMitchell.

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