U.S. Sen. Andy Kim joined Democratic congressional candidates Zack Mullock and Rachel Peace at a campaign rally, lending his support to two challengers seeking to unseat Republican Reps. Jeff Van Drew (R-Dennis) and Chris Smith (R-Manchester).
Kim praised both candidates as public servants willing to stand up for their communities while delivering a blistering assessment of congressional Republicans and the Trump administration.
“When I think of the opposite of Pete Hegseth, the opposite of JD Vance, I think of a public servant like Zack Mullock,” Kim said, “who is going to stand up for his community, who is fighting for his amazing, beautiful family”
“I see a bunch of cowards all over the place, and it is disgusting”
Mullock, the mayor of Cape May, said his campaign had spent eight months trying to convince national Democrats that Van Drew, a four-term incumbent, was vulnerable. Now, with outside Democratic groups pouring money into the race, Mullock says his campaign’s assessment has been vindicated.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee added New Jersey’s 2nd district to its Districts in Play program in October, a significant shift for a district national Democrats had largely written off in previous election cycles. Project 218, a Democratic-aligned outside group, has also committed $1.5 million to television advertising targeting Van Drew.
But Mullock insisted he could win without outside help.
“I don’t think we need them,” he said. “We tried to tell them this was going to be a close race for the last eight months”
Mullock questioned the polling that initially led national Democrats to overlook the race, saying his conversations with voters, including Republicans, had consistently suggested a competitive contest.
“I think their polling is terrible. What we heard on the ground when we spoke to so many Republicans, we were getting we’re going to vote for you,” Mullock stated. “I always say the candidate has got to be the best pollster because you’re talking to thousands of people. “I think we’ve been in this the whole time; they just didn’t necessarily have the polling to show it”
Kim said strong Democratic early voting numbers, including in traditionally Republican areas, reflected the enthusiasm he has encountered on the campaign trail. But he warned against assuming that an advantage in advance voting would translate into victory on Election Day.
“The numbers are very encouraging; it’s showing and reflecting the energy that we see out there,” said Kim. who represented part of Ocean County during his first four years as a congressman. “What we also know, though, is that you can’t let your guard down; a lot of supporters of Republicans tend to vote closer to or on election day”
“All we can do is just do our best to get the word out of what’s at stake”
Kim suggested that dissatisfaction with the Trump administration was creating opportunities for Democrats well beyond the congressional races.
“People are not just upset at the federal level; they’re upset at every other level of government too,” he said, “especially when it comes to Republicans that are just continuing to stand by Donald Trump and this illegal war that’s raising our costs”
Peace, meanwhile, is attempting to accomplish something Democrats have been unable to do since 1980: defeat Smith, who is seeking his 24th term in Congress.
The 4th district is New Jersey’s most Republican congressional district, routinely giving GOP candidates margins of roughly 30 percentage points. But Peace argued that Smith’s longevity has become a liability rather than an asset.
“For 45 years, he has been a dereliction of duty,” Peace said.
“I was negative 12 years old when he was elected,” she said.
Peace acknowledged that Smith once had considerable support within her own family, and that his record on issues involving veterans, autism and people with disabilities had earned him the loyalty of voters who might not otherwise support a Republican.
“I understand Congressman Chris Smith very well; I understand his base very well because I grew up in a home that voted for him religiously,” Peace said.
“He has been a champion for the autism community historically; he has been a champion for veterans historically; he has been a champion for people with disabilities historically.
“In fact, he actually helped my older sister get access to disability services and Section 8 housing”
But Peace said Smith’s past accomplishments should not shield him from criticism of his current record.
“What changed is what people need to focus on,” she said. “It’s ok if you voted for him before; he used to do good stuff, just not anymore”
Peace pointed to Smith’s past willingness to break with Republican leadership, including his 2018 vote to preserve the Affordable Care Act, as an example of the independence she believes he has abandoned.
“He doesn’t do that anymore, ” Peace said.
She accused Smith of supporting healthcare cuts that would harm his own constituents, arguing that his loyalty to Trump has overtaken his commitment to the district.
“He just cut healthcare for 137,000 Medicaid recipients in congressional district 4,” Peace said.
“The fact of the matter is, whatever he was once known for, he is hurting his own legacy because, under this current Trump administration, he is more concerned with keeping his job than he is with serving the people “
Peace said voters who once supported Smith are increasingly willing to reconsider that loyalty.
“They are voting based on the present,” Peace argued.
She also sought to position herself as a representative for the entire district, rather than simply its Democratic voters.
“Ultimately, I will serve everyone in this district, not just the base, not just the Democrats,” Peace said.
Peace said her campaign’s social media outreach has helped her connect with voters who have felt ignored by traditional congressional campaigns.
“I certainly feel we are reaching younger voters and voters who don’t feel like anyone is engaging with them,” she said.
Still, Smith remains a formidable opponent. He has survived shifting political climates, redistricting, and more than four decades of Democratic challengers, and Peace faces the daunting task of persuading voters in one of New Jersey’s most reliably Republican districts to abandon a congressman many have supported for generations.