PRINCETON - One of the buildings here with a north-facing facade that resembles the Parthenon houses the American Whig-Cliosophic Society. Upstairs on the second floor Monday night, the chairs sat sedately in front of a crowd of Princetonians ready to scrutinize the candidates running in the Democratic Primary for Congress in the 12th District.

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The contenders walked in looking like crew members of a NASA space mission, waving to the crowd, self-possessed, fresh and exuberant, collegial, as if they were all part of the same team and not obviously intent on knocking one another's block off for the sole privilege of manning that elusive CD-12 capsule currently occupied by retiring U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman.

Eleven of the 14 candidates showed up: Squire Servance, Sujit Singh, Kyle Little, Sue Altman, Adam Hamawy, Shaniel Robinson, Adrian Mapp, Elijah Dixon, Matt Adams, Jay Vaingankar, and Sam Wang.

Team Wang had immediately tried to assert dominance over the campus with a student-manned stand, reminding people of his home field advantage here as the only Princeton University neuroscience professor in the contest.

They started with priorities.

What policy priority separates you from the rest?

Altman: universal healthcare.

Servance: More aggressive oversight. "Make sure everybody gets held to account."

Robinson: Affordability. "I would set policy that would address affordability issues."

Wang: Restoring Congress to oversee a runaway executive and a runaway judiciary.

Adams (a retired U.S. Army Reserve Lt. Colonel): "The administration is literally doing nothing to stop what could literally be the end of humanity. We need human intervention. We need to regulate AI."

Little: Revitalize our state capital.

Vaingankar: Abolish ICE.

Dixon: Impair the influence of dark money in politics.

Mapp: Eliminate the endowment tax. "The endowment tax is a tax on working families. Endowments were intended for research and to provide relief for poor families."

Hamawy: We all want to unrig the economy. "I would start taxing the billionaires."

What steps would you take to reform elections?

Hamawy: Make sure the SAVE Act doesn't pass. Make election day a federal holiday. Let's pass the John Lewis Voter Act so voters can vote without restrictions.

Mapp: Fierce advocate against the SACE ACT. "It is a poll tax."

Dixon: More information to leverage community-based organizations.

Vaingankar: Get big money out of politics. Get rid of super PACS and dark money.

Little: Talk to people. Educate people.

Adams: John Lewis Voting Rights Act. Pass it. Also, ditch gerrymandering. "Has anyone looked at NJ-12 lately?"

Wang: Make democracy work better for everyone. Short term challenge: Turn out to protect the vote this November. Long term challenge: independent citizen commissions.

Robinson: "We have to embrace all who have a voice and a stake in building America back better."

Servance: Make sure SAVE Act does not pass. Ensure people automatically get registered.

Altman: The fight for democracy and the fight for our economy two sides of the same coin. The Democratic Party [the political establishment]... has not delivered for people for decades. Fought to get rid of the county line.

Singh: Get rid of dark money.

Strategy of Dems if the party remains in the minority?

Mapp: "What we have to do is hold the executive branch accountable. Work across the aisle. Work with the problem solvers."

Dixon: A self-professed socialist. "The enemy is corporate interests."

Altman: If Dems don't win back the House, the candidate said she is concerned about a peaceful transfer of power and would work with the governor to protect New Jerseyans.

The large number of candidates in the contest continued to impair the amount of time for the contenders to dive into the issues at length. Asked if they would back another candidate if they themselves weren't running, Altman said she would support Robinson - an easy choice. Adams picked Wang. Dixon singled out Hamawy. No one else choose one person.

Mapp: "I intend to be in the race [for the duration]."

"Now that the county line is gone, everyone has a chance," said Vaingankar.

"I'm not a politician." - Servance.

"I'm not a politician, I'm a political leader." - Robinson.

Little at one point said the only people who should vote Republican are straight white males. Due to go next, Adams (pictured, top) warily stood up with the microphone in his hand as the crowd laughed. He's straight, white, and male - and a Democrat.

"Some people don't think I should be here," he cracked later.

"I like Matt Adams," Little shot back.