国防部长皮特·海格塞斯周五敦促美国军人及其家属在即将到来的2026年中期选举中积极投票，并警告称，两年前有30万名军人未能投票。海格塞斯在周五发布的一段近两分钟的视频中表示：“无论你的家乡在哪个州或你目前的服役状态如何，你都可以使用标准化的联邦明信片申请选票；如果你被前沿部署且标准选票延迟，你也可以使用联邦投寄缺席选票。所有这些流程都是简单明了的，且受法律保护。”他在视频中引导武装部队访问联邦投票援助计划（FVAP）网站。五角大楼负责人对指挥官们的信贷也是如此。“你不是在告诉他们投给谁。你只是在告诉他们去投票，”他说。海格塞斯还在视频中告诉投票援助官们要“走出去”，并鼓励军人们投票。“每一位军人都应当有机会投出他或她的选票，并确信它会被统计。让我们伟大的国家保持自由之地和勇者之乡的称号，”他说。“行动起来去投票吧。”根据FVAP的数据，在2024年大选中，现役军人中有略超三分之二（67%）的人进行了投票，与2020年相比下降了3%。FVAP表示，在130万现役军人中，有71%的人有资格凭借特殊保护投出缺席选票，因为他们驻扎在远离其投票登记地的地方。这位国防部长在期中选举前的筹备工作中一直很活跃。今年5月，他前往肯塔基州，为众议员托马斯·马西（肯塔基州共和党人）的初选挑战者、前海豹突击队员埃德·加尔雷因拉票。海格塞斯当时表示：“战士们理解使命，理解团队合作，理解忠诚，并且他们理解在战斗中你绝不能削弱自己人来推进目标，这就是埃德·加尔雷因所理解的，因为他亲身经历过。”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday urged U.S. service members and their families to and vote in the upcoming 2026 midterm elections, warning that 300,000 troops did not to cast votes two years ago. “Regardless of your home state or current duty status, you can use a standardized federal postcard to and request a ballot, and if you're forward deployed and your standard ballot is delayed, you can use the federal write-in absentee ballot. All of these processes are straightforward and protected by law,” Hegseth said in a nearly 2-minute video released on Friday, pointing the armed forces to the Federal Voting Assistance Program (FVAP) website. The Pentagon chief’s message to commanders was the same. “You're not telling them who to vote for. You're just telling them to vote,” he said. Hegseth also told voting assistance officers in the video to “get out there” and the service members. “Every warrior deserves an opportunity to cast his or her ballot, and be confident that it will be counted. Keep our nation the land of the free and the home of the brave,” he said. “Geted and vote.” Just over two-thirds, 67 percent, of active-duty military members wereed to vote in the 2024 election, a 3 percent drop compared to 2020, according to FVAP. Seventy-one percent of the 1.3 million active-duty military members are eligible to cast an absentee ballot with special protections because they are stationed away from their voting residence, FVAP said. The Defense secretary has been active in the lead-up to the midterms. In May, he traveled to Kentucky to stump for Rep. Thomas Massie’s (R-Ky.) primary challenger, former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein. “War fighters understand mission, they understand teamwork, they understand loyalty, and they understand that in the middle of a fight, you don’t weaken your own side to advance to the objective, and that’s what Ed Gallrein understands, because he has lived it,” Hegseth said at the time. Gallrein ended up defeating Massie, a prominent Trump critic, in the Republican primary. Earlier this month, Massie introduced articles of impeachment against Hegseth. Hegseth also went to Iowa last month to campaign for Rep. Zach Nunn (R) at the Iowa State Fair.
加尔雷恩最终在共和党初选中击败了马西，后者是特朗普的著名批评者。本月初，马西提出了针对赫格塞斯的弹劾条款。上个月，赫格塞斯还前往爱荷华州，在爱荷华州博览会为共和党众议员扎克·努恩助选。
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday urged U.S. service members and their families to and vote in the upcoming 2026 midterm elections, warning that 300,000 troops did not to cast votes two years ago. “Regardless of your home state or current duty status, you can use a standardized federal postcard to and request a ballot, and if you're forward deployed and your standard ballot is delayed, you can use the federal write-in absentee ballot. All of these processes are straightforward and protected by law,” Hegseth said in a nearly 2-minute video released on Friday, pointing the armed forces to the Federal Voting Assistance Program (FVAP) website. The Pentagon chief’s message to commanders was the same. “You're not telling them who to vote for. You're just telling them to vote,” he said. Hegseth also told voting assistance officers in the video to “get out there” and the service members. “Every warrior deserves an opportunity to cast his or her ballot, and be confident that it will be counted. Keep our nation the land of the free and the home of the brave,” he said. “Geted and vote.” Just over two-thirds, 67 percent, of active-duty military members wereed to vote in the 2024 election, a 3 percent drop compared to 2020, according to FVAP. Seventy-one percent of the 1.3 million active-duty military members are eligible to cast an absentee ballot with special protections because they are stationed away from their voting residence, FVAP said. The Defense secretary has been active in the lead-up to the midterms. In May, he traveled to Kentucky to stump for Rep. Thomas Massie’s (R-Ky.) primary challenger, former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein. “War fighters understand mission, they understand teamwork, they understand loyalty, and they understand that in the middle of a fight, you don’t weaken your own side to advance to the objective, and that’s what Ed Gallrein understands, because he has lived it,” Hegseth said at the time. Gallrein ended up defeating Massie, a prominent Trump critic, in the Republican primary. Earlier this month, Massie introduced articles of impeachment against Hegseth. Hegseth also went to Iowa last month to campaign for Rep. Zach Nunn (R) at the Iowa State Fair.