Incoming Congress will see the least number of veterans since the WWII era

The number of veterans serving on Capitol Hill will be at its lowest level since World War II once the new Congress is sworn in next month.

Despite a high number of former service members who ran for office this year, just 91 veterans will become members of the 117th Congress, five less than the prior Congress, with 74 serving in the House and 17 in the Senate.

The majority of the veterans who were elected are Republicans, including Sen.-elect Roger Marshall of Kansas and 12 incoming Republican House members, according to Military Times.

Although there was no veteran on either presidential ticket for the third consecutive election — the late Sen. John McCain was the last veteran to run for president — more than 180 veterans ran in congressional races across the country, up from 173 in the previous cycle.

The 2020 race also saw a record number of female veterans who ran for the two major parties, including four Senate races, with 28 female former service members having run.

One key race that took the national spotlight involved two veterans, Republican Martha McSally and Democrat Mark Kelly, of Arizona.

Incumbent Sen. Martha McSally, the Arizona Republican who filled the vacancy left by Sen. McCain in 2018, lost her seat to Mark Kelly, a retired Navy combat pilot of 24 years and NASA astronaut.

The number of veterans serving on Capitol Hill has steadily declined since the early 1970s, when the majority of lawmakers had some kind of military experience.

According to the publication, 236 lawmakers in 1993 were veterans, and within 18 years, that number was halved.