Leela Gray is running to represent Florida’s Thirteenth Congressional District after a career spanning senior military leadership, national security, technology, and veterans advocacy. Gray served 30 years in the U.S. Army and Army Reserve, retiring as a Brigadier General after holding senior command positions, including service as a Deputy Commanding General with U.S. Army Central. Her military career included overseas deployments and operational leadership, and she later worked on counter-extremist messaging at the Department of State and served as a strategic advisor to U.S. Army Cyber Command. Gray is also an attorney and has worked in the technology and strategic-communications sectors. 

Phil Ehr is running to represent Florida’s Twenty-Eighth Congressional District after a 26-year career in the U.S. Navy. Ehr began his service as an enlisted sailor and ultimately retired as a Commander. His career included reconnaissance missions during the Cold War, combat support during Desert Storm, and senior operational responsibilities during NATO’s Operation Allied Force. He also served in NATO’s Joint Electronic Warfare Core Staff, including as its Deputy Director and senior U.S. officer. Since retiring from the Navy, Ehr has remained active in national-security and democracy-focused work, including founding an organization focused on countering disinformation and participating in humanitarian missions to Ukraine. 

Debbie Wasserman Schultz is running to represent Florida’s Twentieth Congressional District and currently represents Florida’s Twenty-Fifth Congressional District. A longtime member of Congress, she serves on the House Foreign Affairs and Appropriations Committees. Her Appropriations assignments include Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies and Energy and Water Development, giving her direct responsibilities involving military installations, veterans programs, and Department of Energy national-security activities.

Bale Dalton is running for Congress in Florida’s 7th District. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy, going on to serve 24 years in the Navy and Navy Reserve, including 13 years on active duty with deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan, the Horn of Africa, and the Pacific. As a Navy helicopter pilot, he flew medical evacuation missions in Kuwait, delivered relief after Hurricane Katrina, supported special operations in Iraq and Africa, and directed combat air support in Afghanistan. He later worked at the State Department and for Senator Bill Nelson in Congress, returned to active duty as commanding officer of the Navy’s special operations support squadron, and went on to serve as NASA’s Chief of Staff, managing 16,500 employees.

James Martin is running for Congress in Florida’s 21st District. A fourth-generation Floridian, he earned an appointment to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, graduated with honors in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, and spent nearly ten years in the Coast Guard serving on four ships and commanding two cutters in Fort Pierce, Florida. His last active-duty assignment was Chief of Staff for National Security Affairs and Executive Secretary of the Office of the Vice President at the White House from 2022 to 2025, where he served both Vice President Harris and Vice President Vance. He now holds a commission as a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve.