Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) threw his support behind Nancy Lacore on Wednesday, a retired three-star admiral who was ousted by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth last year and is now running for Congress in South Carolina’s 1st district.
Lacore, a Democrat, is vying to replace outgoing Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), who gave up the seat for an unsuccessful bid for the GOP gubernatorial nomination. The race is seen as a pickup opportunity for Democrats, though the Cook Political Report rates it as likely Republican.
Kelly, a retired Navy captain, and Lacore share a common adversary in Hegseth. Kelly was among six lawmakers who appeared in a video last year advising service members to disobey illegal orders, prompting Hegseth to issue a formal censure and threaten military demotion and pension cuts. A federal judge later blocked that action.
“The one thing we share is we both consider public service to be about delivering results to people and about the Constitution, not about political games,” Lacore told NOTUS, which first reported the endorsement. “Yet we have both been caught up in some political games, thanks to Pete Hegseth.”
Lacore won her primary earlier this month with backing from PACs such as EMILY’s List, VoteVets, and New Politics. Kelly’s endorsement comes as Democrats aim to flip House and Senate seats in the midterms, and he has pledged $2,500 donations to ten military veterans he’s endorsed.
In a separate Instagram post, Kelly endorsed other veterans, including former Navy helicopter pilot and NASA chief of staff Bale Dalton, third-generation veteran Leela Gray in Florida, and Navy JAG officer Zach Dembo in Kentucky. “Veterans understand what it means to put country before self,” Kelly wrote. “These leaders did it during their time in service, and now they’re answering the call again to fight for their communities in Congress.”
Kelly has already contributed over $1 million to candidates in more than a dozen House and statewide races, including former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s Senate campaign and Sen. Sherrod Brown’s reelection bid in Ohio. The Arizona senator’s support for Lacore underscores the broader Democratic strategy to leverage veteran candidates in battleground districts.
The race in South Carolina’s 1st district has drawn national attention, especially after Hegseth’s firing of top military officials sparked GOP rifts. Lacore’s campaign is framing the contest as a referendum on Hegseth’s leadership and the administration’s handling of military personnel.
