[ad_1]
Democratic challenger Andy Kim on Wednesday declared his victory over US Republican Tom MacArthur, R-3, although the tight race for the 3rd congressional district was dead.
The district, which stretches between Burlington County in the suburbs of Philadelphia and Ocean County along the shoreline, has been largely occupied by the GOP over the last three decades.
The AP did not call the race. It was one of the most watched of the country.
The unofficial returns in Burlington County, released Wednesday night, showed Kim with over 2,000 votes ahead of the incumbent. MacArthur said Wednesday night via Twitter that he was not ready to concede the race.
"This campaign has been tough and, like Andy Kim, I am ready to see the end of it," said the MacArthur release. "I've always said that I would be guided by the constituents of the district and there are nearly 7,000 others who have not been heard yet.We must make sure that their votes – and all the votes – are counted in a transparent manner that protects the integrity of the election ".
Officials indicated that they were still considering counting the provisional votes and postal ballots postmarked no later than election day.
The chairman of the Burlington County Election Council, Joe Dugan, said that there were about 26,000 ballots mailed.
In the GOP-friendly district, Jason Varano, head of the Ocean County Elections Council, said that about 31,000 postal ballots were already reflected in the results posted online.
Officials state that provisional ballots must also be counted.
MacArthur has supported Trump more often than any other member of the New Jersey congressional delegation, according to Nate Silver's FiveThirtyEight.
He helped save the president's attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, by proposing a compromise allowing states not to end the preconditions imposed on corporations. d & # 39; insurance. This provision allowed patients with persistent chronic diseases to not be denied insurance coverage.
MacArthur, 58, formerly responsible for health insurance, pointed out that he had been working for bipartisan solutions in Congress and had called Kim's campaign a protest vote for Trump.
Ask Alexa
He blamed Kim for being a Liberal Democrat and for allegedly profiting from TV commercials paid for by a political action committee of US House Democrat Leader Nancy Pelosi. Kim had promised not to accept CAP money.
Aged 36, Kim, who had never been a candidate in an election, was a civilian adviser to military leaders in Afghanistan and Iraq and aiding national security in the administration of Democratic President Barack Obama.
MacArthur accused Kim of embellishing his resume and labeled him "grassroots employee" on his overseas tours.
Kim blamed MacArthur for taking a stand for Trump during the repeal of Obamacare, who eventually died in the US Senate with the decisive vote of former Sen. John McCain. Kim also attacked MacArthur for voting for Trump's tax relief plan that became law and eliminated all but $ 10,000 local and state tax deductions, residents' preferred deductions. northeastern, particularly New Jersey.
The 3rd District includes Burlington and Ocean Counties and the McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst Common Base, with an area of 40,000 acres. The main military installation has been an economic engine in the region since it opened in 1938.
Democrats won at least 10 of the 12 seats in the House in New Jersey, three of which are overthrown.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
You can contact Bill Duhart at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @bduhart. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips
[ad_2]
Source link
