Former President Donald Trump has thrown his support behind two military veterans, Derrick Anderson and Laurie Buckhout, who are seeking to flip House seats from Democratic to Republican control in the upcoming midterm elections.
Anderson, a former U.S. Army Special Forces Green Beret, is vying for the seat currently held by Rep. Abigail Spanberger, a Democrat who announced her intention to run for governor of Virginia in 2025. In his endorsement, Trump praised Anderson’s military service, highlighting his deployments to Afghanistan, Bahrain, Jordan, Israel, and Lebanon. He contrasted Anderson’s record with that of the current administration, claiming that Anderson “never left anyone behind” unlike the Biden administration.
Anderson, who narrowly lost the Republican primary in 2022, is facing off against Democrat Yevgeny “Eugene” Vindman, a former military official who was involved in the impeachment inquiry against former President Trump.
Meanwhile, Laurie Buckhout, a former Army colonel, is seeking to unseat incumbent Rep. Don Davis in North Carolina’s 1st Congressional District. Trump described Buckhout as a “Decorated Combat Commander” who will “Grow the Economy, Lower Inflation, Uphold the Rule of Law, Secure our Border, Support our Military/Vets, and Protect our always under siege Second Amendment.”
Buckhout, who served for 26 years in the U.S. Army, has criticized Davis, a U.S. Air Force veteran, for being a “career politician” beholden to President Biden and the Democratic policies she believes are harming her district.
Both Anderson and Buckhout are running on platforms that emphasize their military experience and conservative values, hoping to capitalize on voter dissatisfaction with the current administration. The outcome of these races will be closely watched as indicators of the national political climate heading into the 2024 presidential election.
