GOP Calls for Probe of State’s Election Rolls ; Officials: Research Shows Potential for Fraud

Republican party officials say New Jersey’s election rolls contain tens of thousands of duplicate voter registrations and asked state authorities Thursday to investigate.

State GOP Chairman Tom Wilson said research done by the party raises serious questions about the potential of voter fraud and electoral accuracy in the gubernatorial election this November.

“Our investigation has uncovered evidence of people voting twice in the same election, dead people registered to vote, tens of thousands registered more than once in New Jersey and hundreds of thousands registered in New Jersey and in other states,” Wilson said.

“I know this is going to be a close election and I want to ensure the integrity of the voting process,” he said.

The Republican candidate in the governor’s race, Doug Forrester, has been trailing in public opinion surveys. In one poll released Monday his Democratic opponent, U.S. Sen. Jon Corzine, widened the gap to an 18-point lead.

Republicans have often complained that Democrats benefit by registration irregularities in urban areas.

GOP officials said they collected voter registration data from across New Jersey and from five other states – New York, Pennsylvania, Florida, and North and South Carolina. They chose these states, they said, because there is a great deal of population migration between them and New Jersey.

They hired consultants to analyze electronic lists of these voter records on computers designed to find name and birth date matches in the files. They said they did not use party affiliation as a criteria in the search, but merely sought to find duplicate voter registrations.

What Republicans discovered, party officials said, was that many people were listed in election records as being registered to vote simultaneously in two places at the time of the 2004 general election.

They said that 170,558 people appear to have been registered in New Jersey at the same time they were on voter rolls in one of these five other states. Of that group, 6,572 “appear to have voted” in New Jersey and one of the other states, party officials said.

Additionally, they found 54,601 voters who appeared to be registered at the same time in two different New Jersey counties. Of this group, 4,397 “appear to have voted twice in the 2004 election,” party officials said.

Wilson acknowledged that database errors in government election records may be responsible for some duplicate registrations. Party officials also concede that duplicate registrations are not uncommon and occur chiefly when people move between states and counties.

The problem, party officials say, is compounded by New Jersey’s clumsy registration system where all 21 counties separately handle voter registration duties and maintain election rolls. A centralized statewide registration database will begin operating next year.

Wilson said sloppy record-keeping cannot explain all of the irregularities the party found. The researchers found that 4,755 ballots were cast in November 2004 by registered voters who in other public records are listed as deceased, he said.

“Clearly, if you’re dead, you didn’t vote,” Wilson said, saying that such findings suggest voter fraud.

Bergen County led the state in the number of “potential deceased” voters who cast votes last year – 609, party officials said. Passaic County had 229 and Morris had 298.

Republican party officials say they turned their findings over Thursday to state Attorney General Peter Harvey. The GOP said it would go to court if Harvey does not act quickly to clean up the state’s voter rolls. Party officials also sent a letter to Harvey asking him to respond by Sept. 23.

“If his response is not appropriate, we will prepare a suit,” said Mark Sheridan, the state party’s legal counsel.

A spokesman for the state Attorney General’s Office said the agency will review the Republican claims.

“The letter has been received, it will be reviewed and directed appropriately,” said the spokesman, Lee Moore. “And a determination will be made as to what course of action is called for – if any.”