TOMS RIVER- Democratic candidate Andy Kim was declared the victor in a hard-fought battle for a seat in congress from New Jeesey’s Third Congressional District.
After the Associated Press called the race for Kim, Republican two-term incumbent Tom MacArthur conceded the race on Nov. 14.
The Third Congressional District covers 17 municipalities in Ocean County and 36 municipalities in Burlington County.
MacArthur said in a statement, “Tonight, I called Congressman-elect Andy Kim to congratulate him on his victory. Enough provisional ballots have been counted to make the outcome clear. My staff and I will work with him to ensure a smooth transition in every way. It has been an honor to represent the people of ocean and Burlington counties over the last four years, and I am proud to have done so with honesty and integrity. We must all work together to ensure that America remains the shining city on a hill that President Reagan described so many years ago.”
Kim is a former national security official in the Obama administration. This was his first time running for elected office. A democrat has not held the seat since 2008, when John Adler won his election.
MacArthur is the incumbent who is a former insurance executive. He won re-election in 2016 by 20 percentage points.
As of Nov. 15, the vote count was 150,510 for Andrew Kim and 147,036 votes for MacArthur. Kim has a 3,474 vote lead over MacArthur with provisional ballots still being counted in the race.
From Ocean County, MacArthur recorded 76,998 votes, and Kim received 46,861 votes. In Burlington County, Kim registered 103,649 votes and MacArthur collected 70,038 votes.
On Nov. 7, Kim declared victory with staff and supporters in his campaign headquarters in Mount Laurel.
“With the vast majority of votes counted and based off the numbers from Burlington County we saw today, we have built a substantial lead. I am proud to announce we have won this hard fought race. It is an honor and a privilege to be the next congressman of the New Jersey third district,” Kim said.
Congressman MacArthur on Nov.7 after Kim declared victory released a statement that said,
“This has been a hard fought campaign and like Andy Kim, I’m ready to see it come to an end. I have always said that I will be guided by the voters of the district and there are nearly 7,000 more of them who we haven’t heard from yet. We must ensure that their votes- and all votes – are counted in a transparent way that protects the integrity of this election.”
MacArthur was referring to the 7,000 provisional ballots left to be counted in Burlington and Ocean County.
According to BallotPedia, a provisional ballot is cast by a voter whose eligibility to vote cannot be proven at the polls on Election Day. If, after the election, administrators determine that the voter who cast the provisional ballot was eligible to vote, the ballot will be counted as a regular ballot.
“I’m ready to get to work serving my home district and represent the New Jersey third district with integrity and civility in Washington,” Kim tweeted from his account on Nov. 14.