WASHINGTON — The congressional midterm elections are still 16 months away, but that hasn't stopped a growing number of Democratic candidates with military experience from starting their bids for office.
"So many veterans are reaching out to us now, we have to start early," said Jon Soltz, chairman of the left-leaning VoteVets.org. "In the past, we might get moving after the primaries. But this cycle, we're setting the pace early."
At least 15 veterans have already announced their intention to run against Republican incumbents in 2018, a sizable number for the minority party this early in the election cycle.
While Democrats have boasted several high-profile veteran wins in recent years — including Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts — roughly three quarters of the 100-plus veterans in Congress are Republicans. Of the 27 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans in Congress, 20 are Republicans.
That image of military members as conservative lawmakers is one Democrats would like to change in coming cycles, especially as issues of national security remain at the forefront of voters' priorities.
"We need to build up that piece of the party," Soltz said. "When people talk about Democrats, they talk about labor, they talk about women's groups, they talk about environmentalists. We need them to talk about veterans that way, too.
"We're looking for that respect."
Earlier this year, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced plans to work closely with Soltz's group to help identify and promote those left-leaning veteran candidates.
Of the 11 veterans VoteVets.org is backing for the 2018 cycle already, eight are in districts that the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has identified as winnable "swing" districts. Soltz said the next step is to help those individuals gain money, recognition and experience before the new year's intensifying campaign arrives.
Meanwhile, Moulton (who VoteVets.org endorsed in his 2014 and 2016 bids for Congress) drew more attention to the issue last month when he announced plans to early endorse eight veteran Democrats, saying that his party needs "a genuinely new message" and "a new generation of leadership."
Last week, the Blue Dog Coalition — a group of moderate House Democrats — announced plans for a new task force on national defense, to "improve the lives of our service members and veterans and ensure American global leadership."
His "Serve America" political action committee has a stated goal of supporting veteran candidates "who will put country ahead of politics" and bring new perspective to gridlocked Capitol Hill.
That’s a theme that has been echoed on both sides of the aisle in recent years. In April, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. and arguably Congress’ most well-known veteran, said in a CNN interview that he believes younger veterans could help restore civility in politics, because of a common bond and respect that’s lacking among many lawmakers today.
The overall number of veterans in Congress has dropped steadily for decades, with only about 19 percent of elected lawmakers having military experience today. That figure was more than 70 percent in the 1970s.
Still, only about 9 percent of the American population ever served in the ranks, making veterans overrepresented in Congress compared to the voting public.
How many of the early-entry candidates can even survive their own party primaries remains unclear.
Last month, Army veteran Randy Bryce drew headlines when he announced plans to challenge House Speaker Paul Ryan for Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District. The steelworker and former military policeman has ample support among his party base but faces a long-shot bid to unseat one of the best-known and most powerful members of Congress.
Marine Corps veteran Doug Applegate narrowly missed upsetting longtime California Republican Rep. Darrell Issa in 2016, and has rolled last year’s campaign into one continuous run for 2018.
Soltz said he’s also closely watching (and supporting) Navy veteran Mikie Sherrill’s bid for New Jersey’s 11th district (retirement rumors have swirled around incumbent Republican Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen) and Marine Corps veteran Dan McCready’s bid for North Carolina’s 9th district (where Rep. Robert Pittenger easily won in 2016 but presidential candidate Hillary Clinton performed well).
VoteVets.org officials said to expect more names of endorsed veteran candidates in coming months.
Leo Shane III covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White House for Military Times. He can be reached at lshane@militarytimes.com.
Leo covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White House for Military Times. He has covered Washington, D.C. since 2004, focusing on military personnel and veterans policies. His work has earned numerous honors, including a 2009 Polk award, a 2010 National Headliner Award, the IAVA Leadership in Journalism award and the VFW News Media award.
