New Jersey Sen. Andy Kim reflects on becoming the first Korean American in the Senate
NEW JERSEY (WABC) -- Andy Kim was elected as the first Korean to serve the state of New Jersey on the Senate level and many believe it was a long time coming for the constituents of the Garden State.
"As a Korean it is very exciting to see the first Korean American senator, I cannot believe it's happening," said Shane Shin.
"I think just an incredible journey that we would have never expected," said Amber Reed with AAPI New Jersey.
The victory of New Jersey Senator Andy Kim stunned many in the the Asian American community.
"It's a lot to process being the first Korean American in the U.S. senate after over 120 years of Koreans being in America, to get a point where we can say look, we deserve at seat at the table," Kim said.
Towns in northern New Jersey, like Fort Lee and Palisades Park, are home to some of the largest populations of Korean Americans in the entire country... yet the elected leaders in the state don't reflect that.
"Asian Americans in New Jersey, even though we make up 11 percent of the state, only held 3 percent of elected seats at the county level and above," Reed said.
Kim's parents moved to the U.S. from Korea 50 years ago and he grew up in South Jersey. His childhood mirrors that of many who found themselves in parts of the country where there wasn't a large Asian American population.
He worked in the U.S. State Department and was elected to the House of Representatives in 2018. At that time, he was New Jersey's first Asian American to be elected to Congress.
Despite that, some still saw him as the wrong fit for the Senate and he was not favored by most party leaders.
"One person told me that I'm the wrong kind of minority to win statewide, that there is no way that I can build the coalition to be able to win," Kim said. "And I found that so demoralizing and frankly disrespectful, the idea that I can only appeal to people that look like me."
And while he broke through the glass ceiling, Kim says he hopes he can bring others up.
"I like that my boys are growing up in America where they do have the ability to participate in politics if they want to, they have more possibilities but I'm mostly looking forward to the day when I'm no longer unique, that's the kind of America I want to see," he said.
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