After years of missing recruiting goals, sometimes as much as 25 percent for the Army, military recruiting across the board is up.
In early February, the US Army Recruiting Command (USAREC) announced its best December in 15 years, enlisting 346 soldiers daily. By the end of Fiscal Year (FY) 2024, the Army also met its goal of recruiting 55,000 new active-duty soldiers.
U.S. Army Rangers assigned to 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, fire off a AT-4 at a range on Camp Roberts, Calif., Jan 26, 2014. Rangers use a multitude of weaponry during their annual tactical training. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Rashene Mincy/ Not Reviewed)
President Trump and other administration officials immediately took credit for the feat, with newly-confirmed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth claiming that America’s youth want to serve under Trump’s “bold & strong ‘America First’ leadership.”
The President made similar remarks on April 21 at the White House Easter Roll, stating that “[The military has] had the highest number of recruits enlistments [in]…28 or 29 years,” and that “It’s all happened–since November 5th.”
In 2022, the Army fell 15,000 short of its enlistment goal of 60,000. The following year, the service brought in a bit more than 50,000 recruits, widely missing its publicly stated “stretch goal” of 65,000.
The Navy and the Air Force all missed their recruitment targets in 2023, while the Marine Corps and the Space Force have consistently hit their goals.
The Trump Effect? Wormuth Says No
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Sen. Tom Cotton attributed increased Army recruiting numbers to “America First” leadership and “the Trump effect.”
However, according to a former official, data indicates that recruiting numbers began to improve months before the US Presidential election.
“You had some number of young men and women who didn’t want to join the army over the last four years under Joe Biden and Christine Wormuth, the former secretary of the Army, when they thought it was more focused on Wokeness and DEI and climate change,” Cotton told Fox’s “America’s Newsroom.”
“That’s not why young men and women join our military. They do it because they love the country.”
However, Christine Wormuth said it was because of the initiatives she put in place. “No, it did not all start in December,” Wormuth, who served until Jan. 20, said in an interview with Fox News. “We are going like gangbusters, which is terrific.”
Wormuth also denied that the Army was “woke.”
“Concerns about the Army being, quote, woke, have not been a significant issue in our recruiting crisis,” she said. “They weren’t at the beginning of the crisis. They weren’t in the middle of the crisis. They aren’t now. The data does not show that young Americans don’t want to join the Army because they think the Army is woke—however they define that.”
The Army already has 30,000 enlistments for this year, an increase over the 24,000 enlisted by this time last year. The federal fiscal year starts Oct. 1. Under President Joe Biden, the military has seen the worst recruitment numbers since the Vietnam War, which ended 50 years ago, on April 30, 1975.
U.S. Army Sgt. Andrew Barnett scans the area using the optic lens on his M14 enhanced battle rifle outside an Afghan border police observation point in Kunar province, Afghanistan, Jan. 28, 2013. Barnett is assigned to the 101st Airborne Division’s 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Jon Heinrich
Biden’s disastrous decisions surrounding the pulling of troops from Kabul ended in the deaths of 13 US military servicemen. He executed that operation against the counsel of his top military advisers, who predicted the collapse of the country’s government to the Taliban.
The Taliban took control before the last US military jet left the Kabul airstrip on Aug. 30, 2021, stranding at least 1,000 American citizens and abandoning tens of thousands of our Afghan allies, who were hunted and killed by the Taliban. Biden left behind at least $7 billion in US military equipment that the Taliban took control of.
This year, confidence in the military grew from 46% last year to 51% immediately after Trump’s victory, according to the survey that went into the field immediately after the election on Nov. 5.
Reenlistments Are Way Up
One area the Trump administration can positively point to is the increase in reenlistments among its soldiers, especially junior NCOs. Retention isn’t a problem.
The Army announced in late April that, just a little over halfway through the fiscal year, it had already surpassed its reenlistment goals for 2025.
As of the last week of April, the service had reenlisted 15,600 soldiers, easily beating its target of 14,800 for the year. Officials said they’ll begin pulling back on financial incentives designed to encourage reenlistments for the rest of the year, though some will still be available for understaffed occupational fields.
Future Soldier Prep Course
One initiative that definitely contributed to recruiting success was the Army’s decision to launch the Future Soldier Prep Course at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, in August 2022.
The program gives lower-performing recruits up to 90 days of academic or fitness instruction to help them meet military weight and physical fitness standards and move on to basic training.
Some services have relaxed certain requirements, such as dropping the high school diploma/GED requirement by the Navy.
About the Author
Steve Balestrieri is a 19FortyFive National Security Columnist. He served as a US Army Special Forces NCO and Warrant Officer. In addition to writing for 19FortyFive, he covers the NFL for PatsFans.com and is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA). His work was regularly featured in many military publications.
Jim
May 9, 2025 at 10:56 am
I’m glad to hear recruiting is up.
I suggest there are two reasons:
First, yes, “woke” was a major stumbling block to recruiting because military service appeals to the ‘manly’ or warrior virtues of young men.
Second, warriors want to defend America, the country they love and respect, but there have been ‘missions’ which don’t seem devoted to defending America, or putting ‘America First.’ This discourages young men because they aren’t excited about entering a military seemingly devoted to ‘others,’ before America.
I have to come back to the ‘wokism.’
This was rot, pure & simple. A corrosive mixed of social engineering and political correctness.
Young men don’t enter military service to go woke.
Young men want to learn a specialty and benefits or just want to fight for America.
There’s nothing ‘woke’ about fighting for America.
Tough guys don’t go woke. They kick ass.
That’s what young men want and Trump’s rhetoric suggests that’s what his military will provide an opportunity to do.
I believe in restraint in foreign affairs and overseas missions, but for our service members, we want ‘Razors’ who are trained to fight and also have discipline to get the job done.
Trump suggests restraint in foreign affairs and promoting a ‘Razor’ attitude in the military.
‘Wokeness’ doesn’t instill esprit de corps, unit cohesion, and group morale. These are critical components of a successful military.
Woke suggests an individuality ruinous to martial values and young men intuitively know it… who wants to be part of that rot gut?
If martial and warrior attitudes are encouraged and that perception continues, recruiting will take care of itself and will meet the United States’ needs for young men to serve… be Razors and either make the military a career or re-enter civilian life with the tools to be successful…
… gained by the discipline and toughness instilled in the U. S. Military.