N.J. lawmaker calls for firing of assistant attorney general amid voter access concerns
TRENTON, N.J. — Assemblywoman Aura Dunn (R-Morris) is calling for the dismissal of Assistant Attorney General Susan Scott following reports that thousands of New Jersey voters may have been blocked from casting ballots in this year’s primary election due to administrative directives.
Unnamed election officials across the state told the New Jersey Globe that Scott, who leads the Law Division’s Election Office, instructed them not to inform voters of their right to appeal decisions that deemed them ineligible to vote in the June 10 primary or during early voting, which began June 3.
At the center of the issue is a Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) process tied to Real ID applications. According to reports, voters applying for Real ID were prompted to update or confirm their voter registration and party affiliation, regardless of prior registration status. Some voters were subsequently sent letters from county election offices informing them they could not vote due to a party affiliation change that occurred after the legal deadline — 55 days prior to the primary.
“These voters appear to have made honest mistakes,” Dunn said. “Instead, we’re being told they weren’t informed of their right to appeal. If that’s true, and if Scott is behind it, she should be fired immediately.”
Some judges have allowed impacted voters to cast ballots after appeals, while at least one voter was reportedly denied the right to vote by a judge following a party affiliation issue related to a Real ID application.
Election officials told the Globe that provisional ballots were made available to voters when discrepancies arose, but they were not instructed to inform voters about the option of judicial appeals.
Dunn criticized Attorney General Matt Platkin for not taking stronger action. “Platkin promised a fair election process,” she said. “But if these actions are being carried out under his watch, and not corrected, it undermines voter confidence.”
State election law prohibits party affiliation changes within 55 days of a primary election, but it allows voters to seek judicial intervention under certain circumstances.
