Although the overall number of politicians and lawmakers with military experience is on the decline, Congress will be getting an increase in Afghanistan and Iraq veterans in 2015.
According to Military Times, at least 22 veterans of these wars have officially won their races and will be part of the new class. The six democrats and 16 republicans will join the existing 17 Iraq and Afghanistan vets currently in office.
Right now, there are 106 veterans in total serving in Congress. This number will drop next year but is still expected to remain above 100 as of now. Military Times noted that since the 1950s there have not been fewer than 100 former servicemembers in Congress at any given time.
According to St. Louis Today, many veterans are hoping this downward trend will not go on and that more young vets will continue to run. The source noted that many veterans feel as though military experience is a valuable resource that should be decently present in the government.
"Whether or not a member of Congress is a veteran doesn't affect their desire to address a problem, but their intimate knowledge of experience with deploying is really a key factor," Nick McCormick, legislative associate at the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, told St. Louis Today.