Democrats take sixth shot at ousting popular GOP governor who voted for Harris
Democrats in deep blue Vermont have a new nominee as they take a sixth straight shot at trying to oust popular Republican Gov. Phil Scott. Democrats in deep blue Vermont have a new nominee as they take a sixth straight shot at trying to oust popular Republican Gov. Phil Scott. Economist Amanda Janoo on Tuesday defeated former child advocacy organization CEO Aly Richards — who is backed by former Democratic Govs. Howard Dean and Madeleine Kunin — to capture the party’s gubernatorial nomination, the Associated Press reported. Scott was unopposed as he cruised to the GOP gubernatorial nomination. Scott is running for a sixth two-year term steering Vermont, and if he wins the general election and completes another term, he’ll pass Dean as the northern New England state’s longest serving governor. Vermont and neighboring New Hampshire are the only two states in the nation to elect governors every two years. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER Scott is a moderate Republican and a vocal GOP critic of President Donald Trump. The governor endorsed former ambassador and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley in the 2024 Republican presidential primaries, and voted for then-Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, over Trump in that year’s general election. CHECK OUT THE FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS IN THE MIDTERM ELECTIONS Beating Scott in November will once again be a tough task for Democrats in a state where their party normally dominates elections. Scott won a whopping 73% of the vote in his 2024 re-election, besting the 69% he received in his 2022 victory.
Dems eye pick-up in Wisconsin swing district as Rep Van Orden set for rematch in key House race
A former waitress, small-business owner and nonprofit founder won the Democratic primary in Wisconsin’s 3rd Congressional District on Tuesday, setting her up for a rematch with Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden. Rebecca Cooke, raised on an Eau Claire-area dairy farm, defeated former Eau Claire City Council President Emily Berge on Tuesday evening. The win puts Cooke back on the ballot in one of Democrats’ top House pickup opportunities this fall. It will be Cooke’s third attempt to win the western Wisconsin seat. She lost the 2022 Democratic primary to then-state Sen. Brad Pfaff before securing the party’s nomination in 2024. Van Orden defeated her that November by roughly 11,000 votes, winning 51.4% of the vote to Cooke’s 48.6%. WISCONSIN DEM TOUTS ENDORSEMENT FROM UNION PUSHING BACK AGAINST CDL CRACKDOWNS ON ILLEGAL ALIEN TRUCKERS Cooke has sought to make her working-class background central to her campaign. She grew up on a dairy farm near Eau Claire, has worked as a waitress since she was a teenager and founded the Red Letter Grant, a nonprofit supporting women entrepreneurs. She also previously operated a small retail business and served on the board of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. after being appointed by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers. Her campaign has focused on affordability, health care and the economic challenges facing rural communities, while portraying Cooke as a pragmatic Democrat able to appeal across party lines in a district that includes Eau Claire, La Crosse and much of western Wisconsin. Cooke entered the primary as the better-funded candidate and with national support from Democrats. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) added Cooke to its “Red to Blue” program, which directs party resources toward candidates viewed as viable in competitive districts. Berge, a mental health counselor and former Eau Claire City Council president, ran as a local alternative to Cooke, arguing voters should have a choice rather than see the nomination effectively decided by national party backing and fundraising. Her strongest base of support was expected to be in and around Eau Claire. IOWA DEM ADMITS BEING ‘UNCOMFORTABLE’ WITH WHITENESS AS SHE SEEKS TO FLIP COMPETITIVE HOUSE SEAT The general election is likely to renew scrutiny of Cooke’s personal finances and past political work. Van Orden’s campaign has pressed her to release a financial disclosure that was extended until Aug. 13, two days after the primary. The campaign has argued that earlier disclosures showing income from political consulting and rental properties undercut Cooke’s working-class image. Republicans have also sought to cast Cooke as a Democratic political insider, pointing to her work on Democratic campaigns and fundraising. Cooke has presented that experience as part of a broader record that includes operating a business, leading a nonprofit and working in the hospitality industry. Van Orden, a retired Navy SEAL who was first elected in 2022, is seeking a third term. The 3rd district in Wisconsin, a swing state, has leaned Republican in recent presidential elections, but Cooke’s narrow 2024 loss and substantial fundraising have made the race a closely watched contest as Democrats seek to win back the House in November. The bipartisan Cook Political Report moved the race from “lean Republican” in the last election cycle to “toss up.”
Longtime anti-Trump Dem ousted after tough primary from upstart progressive mayor
Fourteen-term Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., met his match in Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin during Tuesday’s hard-fought primary race. Larson, who has served in Congress since the Clinton administration, faced three challengers: Bronin, state Rep. Jillian Gilchrest and Hartford Education Board member Ruth Fortune. The sprawling district includes Hartford, Glastonbury, Bristol and Windsor Locks. Earlier this term, during a markup of legislation providing House members with DOGE access to Treasury payment information, Larson erupted at his colleagues and began yelling: “You will do whatever Elon Musk and Donald Trump tell you to do. Where’s the independence of the committee? Where’s the legislature? We’re an equal branch of government,” Larson yelled. “Look at the empty seats here. Where’s Elon Musk?” HOUSE DEMOCRAT LASHES OUT WHEN GRILLED ON WHETHER SOCIALIST VICTORIES WOULD THREATEN DEM UNITY Larson has routinely criticized Musk and President Donald Trump during his tenure, notably filing more than a dozen articles of impeachment following the arrest and extraction of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. In that case, Larson accused Trump of piracy and other offenses. The impeachment push came as Larson faced a primary challenge from the younger Bronin. Bronin, who also served in the Obama administration, appeared to be gaining on incumbent Larson as the year went on. He ran as a candidate seeking generational change in a longtime Democratic seat. STATE OF PLAY: DEMS BATTLE FOR SHOT AT CRUCIAL ARIZONA HOUSE SEAT AMID GOP’S RAZOR-THIN MAJORITY The First District has not seen a Republican lawmaker since Rep. Edwin May Jr., R-Conn., who served during the Eisenhower administration. Gilchrest is considered a progressive who also is also pro-choice abortion rights. Fortune, considered the lowest-funded major candidate, ran an education-focused campaign. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER Republican challenger Amy Chai, a medical doctor focused on addiction treatment, said on her campaign site that Americans are too stressed and depressed because of national divisions and need a change. Democrats, however, are again favored over Chai and the GOP this fall in the district.
Republican survives primary on Tim Walz’s old congressional turf as Dems eye seat flip
Republican voters in Minnesota chose their incumbent representative in the U.S. House as their nominee in the race for the state’s 1st Congressional District. Finstad faced off with Gregory Goetzman and Oliver Morlan in the Republican primary on Tuesday. Goetzman previously unsuccessfully challenged Finstad in 2024, earning a measly 4.26% of the vote compared to the incumbent’s 90.9%. Morlan, who is involved in his family’s industrial cleaning business, ran in Tuesday’s race as the political outsider. 2026 MIDTERMS: PRIMARIES, KEY RACES AND ELECTION RESULTS Of Minnesota’s eight districts in the U.S. House of Representatives, the 1st District is one of the state’s four Republican-held House seats. It covers a large swath of southern Minnesota, including Rochester and much of the state’s farm country. Finstad will advance to the November general election to face the winner of the Democratic primary between Alex Eaton, a math teacher and former teachers-union leader, and Jake Johnson, a small business owner. Eaton is considered more establishment while Johnson is considered to be the more progressive of the Democrat candidates. The bipartisan Cook Political Report ranks the race as ‘lean Republican,’ a downgrade from the ‘solid Republican’ ranking in the last elections as Minnesota, especially in its city centers, increasingly embraces leftist ideals. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER Rep. Finstad has represented Minnesota in the House since winning a 2022 special election. It was held after Republican Rep. Jim Hagedorn, who after years of therapy and surgery for a kidney cancer diagnosis in 2019 and after testing positive in January 2022 for COVID-19, died on February 17, 2022. Before Hagedorn, the seat was represented by Democrat Tim Walz, who left Congress after being elected governor in 2018. He is still governor, after an unsuccessful run for vice president on the ticket with then-Vice President and presidential candidate Kamala Harris. Walz announced on January 5, 2026 he would not seek reelection. Minnesota’s 1st congressional district has trended Republican in recent election cycles but has a history of electing candidates from both parties. Agriculture, health care, manufacturing and the economy are expected to remain central issues as the race moves toward the November general election. The Republican and Democratic nominees will compete in November to determine who will represent southern Minnesota in the U.S. House.
Failed presidential candidate wins Dem primary for Midwest governor amid fraud scandal fallout
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., has won the Democratic nomination for governor of Minnesota as she continues her bid to replace outgoing Gov. Tim Walz, who dropped out of his re-election bid in the midst of a massive fraud scandal. Klobuchar, Minnesota’s senior U.S. senator and a former Democratic presidential candidate, defeated a field of long-shot challengers in Tuesday’s Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party primary. Klobuchar will move on to face the winner of the crowded GOP primary in November. MN GOVERNOR RACE TO REPLACE WALZ SEES MAJOR SHAKEUP AS GOP CONTENDER ENDS CAMPAIGN: ‘DON’T SEE A PATH’ Walz announced earlier this year that he would not seek another term as governor as his administration faced intense criticism over its handling of fraud involving Minnesota government programs that federal prosecutors say could end up costing the taxpayers over $9 billion. The fraud issue has loomed over Minnesota politics, with Republicans hammering Walz and state Democrats over what they say was a failure to prevent the misuse of taxpayer dollars. Klobuchar entered the race with significant advantages in name recognition and political experience. She has represented Minnesota in the Senate since 2007 and previously served as Hennepin County attorney. She also sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020 before ending her campaign and endorsing former President Joe Biden. KLOBUCHAR VOWS FRAUD CRACKDOWN, AUDIT OF MN GOV’T AS GOP BLASTS WALZ TIES When she rolled out her governing priorities in May, Klobuchar said: “You are right to be angry about the fraud. It is unacceptable and it must end.” She promised a “top-to-bottom audit” of state government beginning on “day one.” The Plymouth, Minnesota born Klobuchar’s campaign includes a policy plank titled “Make Government Accountable and Root out Fraud.” It says that “fixing the government is the foundation of everything we need to do” and promises “immediate action to root out fraud.” Klobuchar’s gubernatorial campaign puts her in the unusual position of seeking a new office without first relinquishing her seat in Washington. Klobuchar has not resigned from the Senate while campaigning for governor. Her current Senate term does not expire until January 2031, meaning a loss in the gubernatorial race would not by itself cost her the Senate seat. If Klobuchar wins the governorship in November and resigns from the Senate, her departure would create a vacancy in Minnesota’s congressional delegation. Klobuchar will now attempt to keep the governor’s mansion in Democratic hands in November in a state that has not had a Republican governor since former Gov. Tim Pawlenty left office in January 2011.
White House asks DOJ to consider new prosecution in Reflecting Pool case
White House officials have asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) to explore whether it would be possible to pursue a new prosecution against the man accused of vandalizing the newly renovated Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, weeks after federal prosecutors moved to dismiss felony charges against him, Fox News has learned. The previous case, which U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office moved to dismiss on July 31, accused Olympic canoeist David Hearn of damaging the costly $14 million project after cracks, algae growth and peeling sealant were discovered. Pirro’s office cited findings from the Department of the Interior that concluded the damage was linked to flaws in the installation process rather than vandalism. White House officials have since reached out to the DOJ to determine whether Hearn could instead face a misdemeanor charge, as first reported by The Wall Street Journal. No final decision has been made, Fox News has learned. TRUMP URGES JEANINE PIRRO TO REVISIT DROPPED LINCOLN MEMORIAL REFLECTING POOL VANDALISM CASE In response to the move, Hearn’s attorneys said pursuing a new case would only undermine the DOJ’s credibility after prosecutors already acknowledged they lacked sufficient evidence to support the original charges. “If true, it would mark a shocking first: a case that the DOJ lost by its own admission because it lacked the evidence to convict, returning from the dead. This would add another bizarre turn to a sad chapter in the DOJ’s history and further harass an innocent man,” the attorneys said in a joint statement. The statement was issued by Norm Eisen of Democracy Defenders Fund, Mary Dohrmann of Washington Litigation Group, and Steve Levin of Steptoe LLP. TRUMP SAYS HE ‘DISAGREES 100%’ WITH U.S. ATTORNEY JEANINE PIRRO OVER REFLECTING POOL CASE While Pirro’s office has moved to drop the original federal case, prosecutors sought a dismissal without prejudice, meaning the charges could potentially be brought again. The possibility of a renewed prosecution comes as the Trump administration has repeatedly maintained that the damage was caused by vandalism. President Donald Trump said slashes were found in the pool’s material that appeared to have been made with a knife. He also claimed people had been seen kneeling at those exact locations with their hands in the water. U.S. Park Police identified Hearn as a suspect after he was reportedly seen grabbing and tugging on a loose section of the pool’s coating on June 19. Police said he continued to do so even after National Park Service employees urged him to stop. TRUMP DOUBLES DOWN ON REFLECTING POOL VANDALISM ALLEGATIONS, CITES NEW WITNESS ACCOUNT The damage was estimated at about $1,000 and resulted in Hearn’s indictment on July 2 on one count of felony destruction of property. Trump has urged Pirro to reconsider her “hastily made” decision to drop that felony charge and criticized Hearn’s alleged political connections, claiming he was a “big player” in the Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue. “U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro should re-visit her hastily made decision, especially since it turned out that the ‘gentleman’ involved is a big player in ActBlue, a disgraceful fundraising SCAM, and is represented by a TRUMP DERANGED SLEAZEBAG, Political Hack Lawyer, Norm Eisen, and CREW, a group that uses ‘charity’ for political purposes which is, to the best of my knowledge, ILLEGAL!” Trump said. Trump later said Pirro “choked” under pressure from a judge regarding the case and “folded like an umbrella.”
Trump’s ‘firewall’ against socialism in battleground state punches ticket to election
Rep. Tom Tiffany is one step closer to capturing the governor’s mansion in battleground Wisconsin for the Republican Party. Tiffany, a hard-right member of the House Freedom Caucus who is backed by President Donald Trump, on Tuesday topped medical service technician Andy Manske to secure the Republican gubernatorial nomination, the Associated Press reported. “This fight is bigger than any one party. It’s bigger than any one candidate. This fight is about Wisconsin and protecting the state we know and love. It’s about lowering property taxes, returning the surplus to you, getting utility costs under control, and letting hardworking Wisconsinites keep more of what they earn,” Tiffany said in a statement after winning the primary. Tiffany is expected to face off in the general election against far-left state Rep. Francesca Hong, who is likely to win the Democratic nomination for governor. DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB The winner in November will succeed Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, who decided against seeking a third term in office. The race is a top gubernatorial flip opportunity for the GOP. Hong, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), is running on a platform that includes guaranteed paid leave, boosting the state’s minimum wage from $7.25 to $20 per hour, and a one-year moratorium in Wisconsin on building AI data centers. Hong has faced scrutiny over years-old social media posts calling for defunding and abolishing the police. But she says she no longer supports cutting police budgets or abolishing police departments. “I’m not defunding the police, not abolishing police. I am serious about public safety,” Hong emphasized on Saturday as she took questions from voters. DEMOCRATIC GROUP LAUNCHES $15 MILLION WAR ON DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISTS: ‘MORTAL DANGER’ Hong also made national headlines over the past two weeks for a resurfaced social media post from 2020 where she argued that the country should “cancel Thanksgiving” in order to “stop celebrating colonialism.” Hong walked back her Thanksgiving comments, amid backlash, and now says that Thanksgiving is her “favorite holiday.” On her resurfaced tweets, Hong told reporters on Saturday that she has “evolved” and “learned.” DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB Pro-GOP super PACs, including one aligned with the Republican Governors Association, shelled out millions of dollars to boost Hong in the primary, as they viewed her as the weakest Democratic candidate. In a Fox News Digital interview on the eve of the primary, Tiffany said his state would be “the firewall… We’ll be the place that stops socialism.” And Tiffany, who grew up on a dairy farm, added, “Some people may not agree with a few of the policies that I’m for, but they know I’m genuine. They know I’m authentic.”
Socialist Wisconsin governor candidate referred to America as ‘abundance of suffering,’ resurfaced post shows
A socialist candidate for governor in Wisconsin with an extensive history of inflammatory online posts once described America as “an abundance of suffering,” Fox News Digital has found. “I want this country to stop being an abundance of suffering but a wealth of opportunity,” reads a Jan. 20, 2022 X post from Wisconsin state Rep. Francesca Hong, who is running in the Democratic Party’s primary election to become the state’s top official. “We can do this by providing equal rights to Black and Brown folks,” the post continues. “Elect more Black and Brown folks who won’t be racist obstructionists. We can all be better and do so much more.” SOCIALIST FRONTRUNNER IN THE HOT SEAT AFTER ‘CANCEL THANKSGIVING’ POST EMERGES ONLINE This isn’t the first time the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) candidate has faced scrutiny for past comments on social media that are especially critical of America and its institutions and ideals. “Cancel Thanksgiving. Should have done this in 1621,” Hong wrote in a now-deleted post on X. “If it takes a worldwide pandemic for us to realize we should stop celebrating colonialism and the original superspreader event that killed indigenous folx [sic] and women, so be it,” she added, referring to the spread of smallpox that killed many indigenous Americans. Despite a string of posts, the former chef and mother-of-one, is now running for the Democratic nomination for governor in Wisconsin. She’s the latest in a strong of socialists seeking statewide or federal office in this year’s primary against establishment Democrats. LEFT’S LATEST SOCIALIST DARLING DRAGGED OVER ‘WHITENESS’ COMMENTS PULLING IN HER OWN FAMILY: ‘WEIRDO RACISM’ Hong, who is Korean America, also said in a 2019 post that she was anxious in the company of White people. “I ate two bites of my kid’s cheeseburger at a Culver’s in black river falls and told him they ran out of ice cream,” that post said. “Mostly just wanted to leave bc I was on the verge of a anxiety attack…to (sic) many old white people who didn’t think we spoke english.” When prosecutors declined to press charges in 2021 for the high-profile shooting of Jacob Blake in August 2020, in Kenosha, Wisc., Hong joined the chorus of left-wing voicing calling to abolish police. “How is 7 bullets in the back not excessive force,” she said at the time. “Police exist to uphold White supremacy. Defund then abolish. Reform can’t be an option. My heart breaks for the trauma the Blake family and their community continues to endure.” TOP WISCONSIN DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST CANDIDATE CONFRONTED ON PAST ‘DEFUND POLICE’ RHETORIC Hong’s team declined in July to walk back her position on police. “Rep. Hong has spoken in the past about police and prison abolition as an aspirational goal, akin to eradicating disease or eliminating poverty,” a spokesperson told Fox News Digital at the time. “Her values haven’t changed, but the way she talks about this issue has.” Hong has acknowledged that the governor does not have the power to defund the police. The candidate brushed off the scrutiny of her posts when asked about them by Fox News Digital ahead of her primary election on Tuesday, saying she wanted to be a sports journalist in college. “I learned then you have some hot takes, and sometimes bad takes on Twitter, and I let my feelings out into the world,” Hong said. FRANCESCA HONG ASKED ABOUT LACK OF AOC ENDORSEMENT AND THE HOUSE DEM’S REMARK ABOUT THE ‘WOKE 1’ ERA She said she was focused on issues voters are concerned about. Hong’s campaign did not return a request for comment on the latest post uncovered by Fox News Digital. Fox News’ CJ Womack and Paul Steinhouser contributed to this report.
HHS bureaucrats accused of ‘sabotaging’ RFK Jr.’s efforts to expose Fauci records
FIRST ON FOX: A Senate Republican leading a dive into Dr. Anthony Fauci’s old government iPhone alleged that “career bureaucrats” within Fauci’s old agency are sabotaging the senator’s and others’ quest for information from the pandemic era. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., told Fox News Digital that he believed longtime employees of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) were putting up roadblocks to his own probe and other information trawling expeditions pushed by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “Again, we don’t know what we don’t know,” Johnson said. “We don’t know what HHS has. Bobby Kennedy doesn’t know what HHS has.” FAUCI HELD IN CONTEMPT AS COVID CELLPHONE LANDS IN HANDS OF SENATE INVESTIGATORS Johnson, along with Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., received a copy of Fauci’s personal work phone from HHS as part of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee’s broader investigation into the former head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). On Monday, Johnson’s panel, the Senate Homeland Security Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, released the first tranche of private messages found on the device, which included over 34,000 text messages and 522 voicemails. The first batch of texts, exchanged between Fauci and former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky and Dr. Vivek Murthy, who would become surgeon general under the Biden administration, revealed that Fauci had concerns about the effects of the second dose of mRNA vaccines on pregnant women in the first trimester. FAUCI’S HHS IPHONE TURNED OVER TO SENATE INVESTIGATORS AS CONTEMPT VOTE LOOMS “I asked around a bit more and another issue came up that you need to be aware of,” Fauci wrote. “Since many people have significant cytokines storm and fever after the 2nd dose, this theoretically could be associated with miscarriage in the 1st trimester.” The lawmaker believed that the revelation was just the “tip of the iceberg,” but has remained cautious with his investigation and what information dumps come next, particularly to protect the personal information of others who may be included in the communications. FAUCI IN THE HOT SEAT AS GOP SENATOR TEARS INTO ‘TRULY SICK’ VACCINE TEXTS: ‘TIP OF THE ICEBERG’ He argued that releasing the first batch of texts was based on public health and safety concerns, said that Fauci’s concern “immediately impacts public safety, immediately impacts informed consent.” As he waded through the rest of the information on the phone, Johnson believed that there was more to find about the HHS’ handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, and charged that even though Kennedy was at the helm, not even he had full knowledge of the information that could be lurking within the agency. “I mean, fortunately, now we have Bobby Kennedy, I think gaining a little bit more control over the agency,” Johnson said. “Remember, most of the people serving in these agencies have been there a long time, and they were involved in the cover-up. They were supposed to be surveilling for vaccine injuries and they weren’t.” “So, you know, Bobby Kennedy has people in those agencies sabotaging his efforts at radical transparency,” he continued. “So this is like pulling teeth. So, I mean, I did not know they had government-issued phones. They’ve been sitting there, locked away somewhere.” HHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Sherrill drops head-turning voter ID declaration in wake of registration fiasco: ‘Significant shift’
New Jersey Democratic Gov. Mikie Sherrill says she would support a voter ID law in the Garden State — even as she slams President Donald Trump’s federal SAVE Act push as “voter suppression.” “Governor Sherrill supports the current rules requiring ID for voter registration and she is open to considering proposals to strengthen those to make sure we have the strongest, fairest elections in the nation,” a spokesperson in the governor’s office told Fox News Digital on Tuesday. Sherrill’s comments hand New Jersey Republicans a new opening to press Democrats on voter ID, even as she rejects Trump’s broader federal election push under the SAVE America Act. Sherrill’s office responded to Fox News Digital on Tuesday after the Garden State Democrat told local media in July she would support a voter ID law if one were passed in New Jersey, saying she “doesn’t have a problem with voter ID.” SCHUMER SAID ‘DEMOCRATS SUPPORT VOTER ID’ — THEN EVERY SENATE DEMOCRAT VOTED AGAINST GOP BILL “I’m very opposed to the SAVE Act,” Sherrill added at the time. “I do believe that is just a tool of voter suppression and an attempt to get all of the personal identifying information of New Jerseyans into the federal government systems, which I’m opposed to.” Sherrill served in the House for seven years and voted against the SAVE Act in 2025, with her office describing the measure as an “extreme voter suppression bill.” Sherrill is facing criticism after announcing last month that a Motor Vehicle Commission system error improperly registered roughly 6,600 people who had indicated they were not U.S. citizens. The state said fewer than 400 people newly registered because of the error voted, and later announced that more than 4,500 registrations were being removed while the remaining cases undergo additional review because some of those individuals may be citizens. New Jersey Assembly Minority Leader John DiMaio told Fox News Digital Sherrill’s recent comments mark a “significant shift” after years of Republicans in the Garden State advocating for voter ID. NEW JERSEY REMOVES 6,600 PEOPLE FROM VOTER ROLLS WHO WERE ELIGIBLE TO CAST A BALLOT FOR 2024 ELECTION “But agreeing with us publicly is the easy part,” DiMaio said, adding that Democratic legislative leaders control what gets a hearing and a vote, and that Republicans have so far heard nothing from them on voter ID. “We’ve been pushing voter ID and other election integrity reforms for years. The bills are already introduced. We’ve repeatedly called for hearings and votes. The roadblock has been Democratic legislative leadership,” the Republican state leader said. DiMaio said the Motor Vehicle System failure exposed serious weaknesses in New Jersey’s election safeguards and they still have not heard an answer of what went wrong. Voter-ID requirements have repeatedly become major partisan fights at the state level, with Democrats and voting-rights groups arguing that some requirements can make it harder for eligible voters to cast ballots. One of the most prominent battles erupted in Georgia in 2021. The state already required photo ID for in-person voting, but a sweeping Republican-backed election law added identification requirements for absentee voting along with other changes. The backlash went national, with MLB moving its 2021 All-Star Game out of Atlanta and some Hollywood figures threatening boycotts. HARRIS BECOMES ACCIDENTAL SAVE ACT ‘SALESWOMAN’ AS TRUMP ATTACK SPECTACULARLY BACKFIRES “Governor Sherrill served our country in the military and as a public servant because she believes in every citizen’s right to participate in our democracy by voting. That’s why she has stood firm against MAGA Republicans’ voter suppression attempts and Trump’s demands for New Jersey voters’ personal identifiable information,” said a spokesperson in the office of the governor. “She has already made voting more accessible by signing the John R. Lewis Voter Empowerment Act and expanded early voting in municipal elections,” the spokesperson added, referencing the law that bans voter intimidation and discrimination, expanding language assistance, and requiring extra review of election changes in places with a history of discrimination. Trump has continued to prioritize and highlight the issue of noncitizens on voter rolls as he renewed his push for the SAVE America Act, which would require documentary proof of U.S. citizenship to register for federal elections and photo identification to cast a federal ballot. “I think they should pass Voter I.D. I think they should pass proof of citizenship—basically SAVE America Act… I think that should be something that we should absolutely get,” Trump said in the Oval Office Monday. Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment.