New Jersey Election Debate Meeting Disrupted by Racist Pornographic Zoom Bomb

A virtual meeting of the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) to select sponsors for upcoming gubernatorial and lieutenant governor debates was abruptly ended after hackers disrupted the session with racist, antisemitic, and pornographic content, including images of a swastika and audio repeating racial slurs. The disruption occurred during a presentation by WABC-TV New York/WPVI-TV Philadelphia/Rutgers Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, with alarms, ringtones, and explosions preceding the offensive content. ELEC Chair Thomas Prol condemned the attack as a "shocking breach of public trust" and announced that top investigators from the governor’s office and state attorney general are involved in the investigation. He emphasized that the perpetrators will be found and prosecuted, framing the incident as an attack on democracy in New Jersey. The meeting has been rescheduled with additional safeguards to prevent similar disruptions. This incident highlights ongoing challenges with increased online meeting vulnerabilities, including previous Zoom bombing events in the state.