Why 'Hellcats' could be the answer to Democrats troubles Democrats believe veterans and former national security offic

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Why ‘Hellcats’ could be the answer to Democrats troubles

Democrats believe veterans and former national security officials can help dig them out of the perception that they’re weak.

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By Liz Crampton and Elena Schneider

06/12/2025 04:43 AM EDT

When Rep. Mikie Sherrill won the New Jersey gubernatorial primary on Tuesday, the “Hellcats” group chat of aspiring female congresswomen lit up in celebration.

All four women in the “Hellcats” chat — named after the first female Marines who served in World War I — have military experience and are running for Congress in 2026. Sherrill, as a former Navy helicopter pilot, offers some much-needed inspiration for the party’s next generation of candidates.....................................



Democrats, looking to turn around their struggling brand and retake the House in 2026, point to Sherrill and presumptive Virginia Democratic gubernatorial nominee Abigail Spanberger, a former congresswoman and CIA officer, as reasons the party will do well.

Sherrill and Spanberger are held up as the model for how the party might turn the tables — running moderate, former veterans and national security officials in tough districts who can say they “have put their country ahead of their party,” said Dan Sena, who served as the executive director of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in 2018........