Shocking leak: NJ candidate’s military records exposed in election firestorm

🔵 Rep. Mikie Sherrill’s unredacted military records, including Social Security info, were improperly released to a GOP operative

⚖️ Sherrill’s team and NJ Democrats are demanding a federal investigation and warning of potential legal action

🔴 The leak comes amid renewed scrutiny of Sherrill’s Naval Academy record, where she was punished in a cheating scandal

What started as a potential scandal for the Democratic candidate for New Jersey governor is now embroiling the Trump administration and her Republican opponent.

On Thursday, U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill’s campaign accused federal officials of illegally releasing her unredacted military personnel records to an ally of Republican gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli.

The records, which included Sherrill’s Social Security number, home addresses, and sensitive family information, were obtained by campaign operative Nicholas De Gregorio, CBS News reported.

The news of the leak came on the day the New Jersey Globe reported that Sherrill had been punished by the U.S. Naval Academy for failing to report classmates implicated in a massive cheating scandal. As a result, Sherrill was barred from walking with her 1994 class even though she did graduate and went on to serve as a helicopter pilot.

Sherrill’s team is threatening legal action against the Ciattarelli campaign. The state's Democratic delegation in Congress is also calling for an investigation into the leak.

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Privacy Act Violations and Political Fallout

Democrats, including U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J. 6th District, and the full New Jersey congressional delegation, are demanding a federal investigation into the release.

“This unprecedented act is a serious violation of privacy – from putting her Social Security number on nearly every page to disclosing sensitive personal information about her family – and a blatant breach of clear protocols for handling sensitive and classified documents," the representatives wrote in a letter to the chairmen of the Armed Services, Oversight, and Veterans’ Affairs Committees.

"This is a dangerous and corrupt attempt to weaponize the federal government for political purposes and meddle in New Jersey’s fall elections," their letter says.

"Determining all individuals involved in this illegal act and punishing them to the fullest extent of the law is essential to restoring public trust and reassuring current and former servicemembers that their privacy will not be violated by their own government, nor will their military service be misconstrued for partisan gain."

The National Personnel Records Center told CBS News that a technician failed to follow standard procedures, releasing more information than permitted under the Freedom of Information Act. De Gregorio said he was “shocked and kind of disgusted” to see Sherrill’s Social Security number included in the file.

"De Gregorio later told CBS News that Ciattarelli's campaign did not hire or encourage him to access the files," the report says, adding that Sherrill learned of the leak on Monday.

Sherrill’s Record and Reaction from Ciattarelli

Sherrill, a U.S. Naval Academy graduate and former Navy helicopter pilot, has a distinguished military and public service career, including a Navy Achievement Medal and work on the House Armed Services Committee.

In reacting to the cheating scandal, Ciattarelli’s campaign manager Eric Arpert called it "both stunning and deeply disturbing."

“For eight years, Mikie Sherrill has built her entire political brand around her time at the Naval Academy and in the Navy, all the while concealing her involvement in the scandal and her punishment. The people of New Jersey deserve complete and total transparency," Arpert was quoted as saying by the Globe. The statement was also posted to Ciattarelli's account on X