ROBBINSVILLE – Andy Kim stood in the kitchen of a home Sunday morning and offered his listeners a clear interpretation of how things are these days.

“I stand before you right now as 20 percent of the House majority,” he told about 25 supporters at a ‘Meet and Greet.'”

That’s right, he explained. With the Dems holding a mere five-seat advantage, every Democratic House member can see himself or herself as one-fifth of that majority.

This was a way for Kim to stress the importance of the midterm election, noting that every seat is vital.

And he stressed to his supportive audience how high the stakes truly are.

For example, if Democrats didn’t have that slim majority, look what would not have happened.

He ticked off a string of achievements, including covid relief under the American Rescue Plan, the billion dollar-plus infrastructure bill, allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices and the PACT Act, which aids veterans exposed to harmful toxins.

It was that last accomplishment that prompted Kim to comment – more generally – on today’s political climate.

Noting that even a bill to aid veterans provoked Republican opposition, Kim asked, “What is happening here?”

Kim, a Rhodes Scholar and a former diplomat, lamented the political sniping of the day and the inability of Republicans and Democrats to agree on anything.

He tries, he says, to be different.

Kim says he’s held 55 “town halls” around CD-3 and that he always says the following:

“Whether you voted for me or not, you’re my boss.”  He claims some people express support for him even if they do not agree with him all the time.

That nice sentiment, notwithstanding, you can’t ignore the raw politics of it all, and things have moved in Kim’s direction.

Kim was proud to point out that he won the district in 2018 after Donald Trump carried it in 2016. And guess what? Trump carried it again in 2020 and Kim won it again – this time by 33,000 votes; his initial win was a squeaker.

That is impressive, but what has to make Kim feel even better is that the district has changed after the 2020 Census to his advantage. Very Republican Ocean County is no longer part of CD-3. It now covers most of Burlington and parts of Monmouth and Mercer counties.

Kim said the district has about 340,000 voters it did not have two years ago, which can be confusing. Redistricting was a big deal in political circles last December, but not everyone follows politics closely. Both sides need to educate some voters.

What is more relevant is that CD-3 now has 62,000 more registered Democrats than Republicans.

Kim, at least on this day, refrained from saying anything truly negative about his opponent, Republican Bob Healey. A low-key fellow, Km does not come across as a guy who enjoys wild personal attacks.

He did say he expected his opponent – whom he did not name – to spread some “lies” about him.  But that was about as far as Kim went.

He seemed happier to talk about his constituent service, saying his office has successfully handled about 8,000 cases. That doesn’t sound sexy, but Kim said it could be the best record in the country.