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In the 116th Congress, 97 of the 535 members (House and Senate) or 18% have served their country in the military. The three states with the most veteran congresspersons are California with seven and Florida and Texas with six each. Of the 97 veteran members 66 (68%) are Republicans and 31 (32%) are Democrat. There are currently only six women with military experience serving as federal lawmakers.
The 116th Congress had nineteen of the new members of Congress that were veterans. This was the largest class of freshman veterans in a decade. Interestingly, 16 members still have a military connection actively serving as part of the Marine Corp Reserve, Air Force Reserve, Army Reserve, Army National Guard, Navy Reserve, and Coast Guard Auxiliary. The greatest number currently serving reservists are with the Army Reserve (3) and the Army National Guard (6).
The House Veterans Affairs Committee (HVAC) has 27 members of which 11 members or 40 percent who have served in the military. There are six Republicans which includes Ranking Member Phil Roe, Mike Bost, Neal Dunn, Jack Bergman, Jim Banks and Greg Steube. There are five Democrats which includes Conor Lamb, Neal Dunn, Max Rose, Gil Cisneros, Elaine Luria and Collin Peterson.
In the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee (SVAC) there are 17 members. However, only two of these members (11%) have some military service. These two are Dan Sullivan (R), and Richard Blumenthal (D).
Of the four top leadership positions in both the US Senate and House the only individual with service in the military is Senate Leader Mitch McConnell. However, it should be noted that Senator Debbie Stabenow, MSW (D) is Chairwomen of Policy & and Communication, one of the four most senior positions among Senate Democrats
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