Presidential order on ballots gets backlash
Sherrill vows to protect rights of state's voters
By: Katie Sobko
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... How would a new executive order from President Donald Trump - aiming at alter the way mail-in ballots are distributed - affect New Jersey?
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The order would require the federal Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration to cerate lists of all the citizens in each state eligible to vote and require the post office to send mail-in ballots only to those people.
..... After those federal agencies compile the list. It would be sent to the chief election official in each state Lieutenant Governor Dale Caldwell, who also serves as New Hersey secretary of state, would be that person.
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The order also calls on the Postal Service to review ballot designs.
..... Trump alleges in the order that these "additional measures are necessary" to avoid voter fraud. The president voted by mail last week [03/30/2026[ in Florida.
..... Governor Mikie Sherrill in a statement that the "Constitution is clear: states run elections, not the federal government," going on to say the order"does nothing to strengthen election integrity and is designed to make it harder for eligible citizens to vote."
....."New Jersey has administered safe, secure, and accessible voting for generations," she said. "Our vote-by-mail system works. Millions of New Jerseyans - Republicans, Democrats and unaffiliated voters alike - rely on it. The president himself has cast ballots by mail."
..... She concluded by saying that "any problem with mail-in ballots would be caused by Trump himself" and that she will "take every action available to protect New Jerseyans fundamental voting rights."
..... That stance was shared by New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport, who said in a statement that elections are run by the states "not the federal government, and certainly not the U.S. Postal Service."
..... "Any changes to election rules cannot be made by the president through a blatantly unlawful executive order that seeks to disenfranchise voters in the name of debunked conspiracy theories about widespread election fraud," she said. "Americans trust their local and state officials to run elections. We'll ensure state and local officials can continue to administer free, fair and secure elections. We are exploring all options to fight this extreme overreach and protect New Jersey voters."
..... New Jersey distributed 1,113,134 vote-by-mail ballots for the 2024 presidential election and 938,323 for last year's [2025] gubernatorial election.
..... "Our government's citizenship lists are incomplete and inaccurate. The United States Postal Service is overburdened and inadequate. This combines a car cash with a train wreck," the Brennan Center for Justice, a Manhattan-based advocacy group focused on voter access, said of Trump's executive order in a statement.
.... Dan Cassino, executive direct of the FDU Poll and a professor of government and politics at Fairleigh Dickinson University, called the order "blatantly unconstitutional" and said it seems likely a "preliminary injunction barring any enforcement of the execute order" will be issued soon after the states file lawsuits to fight it.
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"If the pattern of these executive orders issued by Trump holds, the suit will be heard in full six to 12 months from now, when judges will declare it to be unconstitutional ," he said.
..... But it may affect the elections this November [2026] before it gets to that point, Cassino said.
..... Republicans in recent years have had to convince their voters that vote-by-mail is a safe way to cast a ballot to combat what is believed to be a Democratic advantage in vote-by-mail usage, he said.
..... It might also drive more people to sue ballot drop boxes or vote early in person instead.
..... "Given that there is basically no fraudulent voting by non-citizens or anyone else going on these days, the justification for actions like this has become increasing voter confidence in the electoral system," Cassino said. "We know that these measures don't actually prevent any fraud, because there isn't any fraud to prevent, but making it harder to vote will make citizens believe that there's less fraud."
Feds pursue private NJ data
..... New Jersey has been at odds with the federal government regarding voting access already this year. [2026]
..... The U.S. Department of Justice field a lawsuit against the state looking for private vote data, including addresses, driver's license numbers, birth dat4es and partial Social Security numbers.
..... Similar suits have been dismissed in other states.
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This isn't the first time Trump has tried to shape the electoral process thorough an executive order. One that was signed last year [2025] to implement voting restrictions was blocked by federal judges because Trump lacked the constitutional authority to set voting policy.
..... Despite the U.S. constitution leaving elections to the states, Trump has not shied away from expressing his desire for his administration to regulate them instead. He's gone sofa as to call for an end to voting altogether.
..... "Wehr you think of it, we shouldn't even have an election." Trump told Reuters in January. [2026]
..... Katie Sobko covers the New Jersey Statehouse. Email: sobko@northjersey.com