Middlesex “Convention” Allows One Person to Decide Candidate Endorsement for U.S. Senate for a County of a Quarter Million Registered Democrats

ISELIN N.J. – Today, Congressman Andy Kim refused to back down in the face of deeply unfair tactics during the Middlesex Convention. Prior to the vote taking place, delegates in the room motioned for a secret ballot, however, the Parliamentarian refused to follow up the request which resulted in a chant breaking out amongst the crowd demanding a fair vote. Nonetheless, the public ‘non-binding’ vote proceeded. Voters, many of whom have jobs and positions in local, county, and state government, were required to vote by raising their hands in front of all county leadership. This vote was non-binding and advisory only, as the Chairman made clear that he alone has the sole authority to determine which candidate gets the endorsement. To add insult to injury, the hand-raised votes were not even counted. All of this took place without transparency or accountability as this was the one and only democratic political convention in New Jersey this year that barred press from entering the room and covering the convention proceedings.

“I find it deeply unrepresentative and unfair to have one single person be able to solely decide who is the endorsed candidate for U.S. Senate for a county with over 240,000 registered democrats,” said Congressman Andy Kim. “This election is about restoring trust and integrity, and having a broken system that allows a single person to have this much power to determine elected officials does nothing but further degrade trust in our democracy. The people of New Jersey deserve better, and the voters of Middlesex, not just one party elite, will decide who represents them in the U.S. Senate.”

First elected to Congress in 2018 at the age of 36, three-term Congressman Andy Kim is one of the younger members to serve in Congress and is the first Asian American elected to federal office from New Jersey. If elected to the Senate, Andy would be the 4th youngest Senator, the first senator from South Jersey in recent memory, and the first Asian American elected to the Senate from the entire east coast of America. In 2018 and 2020, Andy defeated two self-funding millionaires in a district carried by former President Trump, and in 2022 Kim defeated his third self-funding millionaire opponent by 12 points.

In his three terms in Congress, Andy has worked hard to lower costs for New Jersey families and help support small businesses through challenging times. Andy has also been a leading champion in fighting against corruption in our broken politics.