Mainstream media outlets lie all the time. But it’s hard to get out of this one.
That’s why a CNN host was forced to retract a blatant lie after there was nowhere left to hide.
CNN and SiriusXM host Michael Smerconish conceded this week that he can no longer claim noncitizen voting never happens, after New Jersey disclosed that a software error improperly registered roughly 6,600 noncitizens and that fewer than 400 of them actually cast ballots.
CNN Host Reverses Long-Held Position on Noncitizen Voting
“I can’t say that any longer,” Smerconish said on “The Michael Smerconish Program.” “I don’t know how often it does happen, but I can’t say any longer, ‘This never happens.'”
Smerconish said he had previously reached the opposite conclusion after discussing a January New York Times analysis titled “Initial Review Finds No Widespread Illegal Voting by Migrants, Puncturing a Trump Claim,” which found no evidence of widespread fraud but noted noncitizens sometimes appeared on voter rolls.
“‘Well, what about New Jersey?’ See, it actually does happen,” Smerconish said, acknowledging the disclosure gave President Donald Trump and his allies a lasting rebuttal whenever opponents dispute that noncitizen voting occurs.
Political Analyst Calls for Independent Investigation
Political analyst Mark Halperin agreed that the disclosure undercut categorical claims about noncitizen voting, while cautioning that more information was needed before conclusions could be reached about its full scale.
“Based on what we now know, the thing that Democrats said doesn’t happen happened,” Halperin said. “And it’s not right to take the word of the Democratic governor of New Jersey about what actually happened.”
“If it happened by accident on this small scale, it requires a lot more explanation and investigation about whether it’s happened in New Jersey more or elsewhere,” Halperin added. “But the scale is not very significant. So we need to know more.”
Sherrill Blames Predecessor, Justice Department Demands Records
New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill said the error affected people who indicated they were not U.S. citizens while applying for driver’s licenses or identification cards between June 2023 and June 2024, but the system registered them to vote anyway.
“Our preliminary analysis shows fewer than 400 individuals who were newly registered for the first time because of the error voted,” Sherrill said, adding that the improperly registered voters were spread across party lines and scattered throughout the state.
Sherrill ordered the affected registrations removed, launched an investigation, and began replacing IDEMIA, the vendor tied to the state’s Motor Vehicle Commission system, while placing blame on failures under former Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration. IDEMIA disputed efforts to pin the blame solely on the company, telling Fox News Digital that “the voter registration information is transmitted to the New Jersey Department of State, Division of Elections, which is ultimately responsible for verifying eligibility to vote.”
The Justice Department has since demanded information about the 6,600 registrations and the ballots cast, with Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon giving the state five days to turn over names, registration details and voting records, warning that “ensuring that U.S. citizens’ votes are not illegally diluted by noncitizens’ votes is of paramount importance.”
