One candidate in Michigan would be the first Navy SEAL to serve in the House as a Democrat. Another Democrat in Arizona is a former Marine drill instructor seeking to be the first woman from the Marines to serve in the House. A third Democrat in New Jersey is a former Navy helicopter pilot whose campaign logo incorporates pilot wings.
The Democratic Party is turning to an unusually large crop of military veterans in an effort to flip the House in 2026, recruiting and promoting veterans in some of the top battleground districts in a reprise of a strategy that helped deliver the House in 2018 during President Trump’s first term.