The National Archives’ inspector general concluded Tuesday that the improper release of New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s unredacted military records during her 2025 gubernatorial campaign was due to human error, not partisan maneuvering. The investigation found that an Archives technician mistakenly released the records, which included sensitive information such as her Social Security number and home addresses, during a routine request. The technician failed to escalate the request for higher-level review, a lapse attributed to distraction.
Sherrill and her Democratic allies had previously accused Republican rival Jack Ciattarelli and the Trump administration of orchestrating the leak to sabotage her campaign. The inspector general’s report, however, found no evidence of political coordination. The technician involved was proposed for removal from federal service for neglect of duty.
The records were released to a Ciattarelli ally amid allegations that Sherrill was implicated in a 1994 Naval Academy cheating scandal. The documents showed she was barred from walking in her graduation for not reporting classmates who cheated on an exam. Sherrill has maintained she did not cheat herself. Ciattarelli’s campaign, represented by Mark Sheridan of Squire Patton Boggs, denied wrongdoing and called for Sherrill to release additional records about the scandal.