VoteVets Politicizes the Military to Elect Radical Democrats
VoteVets Chairman Jonathan Soltz, an officer in the military, is a radical leftist who publicly attacks his Commander-In-Chief.
The far-left organization VoteVets spends hundreds of millions of dollars supporting extremist Democrats in partisan elections across the nation. They claim to advocate for "everyday issues that affect the lives of those who served." Their money trail reveals them as nothing more than a pass-through entity for Democrats and labor unions. In the 2024 election alone VoteVets spent nearly $14 million to get radical Democrats elected—no sign of actually helping veterans.
The chairman and co-founder of VoteVets, Army Reserve Colonel Jonathan Soltz, brought home a cool $600,000 in compensation in 2023. It appears Solz still holds a commission as an officer in the Army, despite leading a controversial and highly partisan political action committee.
Soltz got his start in politics after then-Senator John Kerry (D-MA) read his 2003 graduate paper. Kerry liked his views and put Soltz in charge of his campaign to recruit veterans in Pennsylvania. That experience led Soltz to create VoteVets in 2006.
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A Long Military Career—In Conflict with Politics?
Soltz received his military commission in 1999 and transitioned to the Army Reserves around 2004 where it appears he continues to serve. According to social media posts, Soltz served in the 316th Sustainment Command in 2019 and in the 85th Army Reserve Support Command in 2021. Restoration News confirmed he left the 85th around Feb. 2023 and went to a unit in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) prohibits active-duty military members from soliciting funds for partisan political activities. Soltz appears to be a reservist, not active duty, but would seem to be subject to the UCMJ rules during any active drilling status.
Reports show Soltz was recalled to active duty in 2011. Around that time there were two organizations associated with Soltz: a political action committee called VoteVets PAC and VoteVets Action Fund, a non-profit lobbying group.
Despite claims that Soltz took a leave of absence as chairman of VoteVets while recalled to active duty, VoteVets Action Fund IRS form 990 lists Soltz as principal officer for the period ending June 30, 2011. The organization raised money for electioneering communications and engaged in political campaign activities. The Action Fund controls the PAC. Records indicate Soltz received over $300,000 in compensation during the filing period. He was reportedly on active duty for at least half that time. The prior year period ending June 30, 2010 he received just over $100,000 in compensation. Why would he be paid triple the amount when he was on a leave of absence for at least half the time?
While Soltz may follow the letter of the law, it raises red flags that as a military officer he has such little regard for how his outspoken views could impact those he leads.
Radical Views and Politicians Supported by VoteVets
The VoteVets organization advocates for extremist political views and does not represent the characteristics of the military veterans they claim to represent. They publicly advocate for transgenders in the military, push for climate extremism, and want to curtail First Amendment liberties through "combating the spread of disinformation." Their social media is filled with far-left anti-gun, pro-abortion propaganda. Soltz even signed a letter during COVID absurdly calling Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis "guilty of malfeasance in office" if he didn't order beaches to be closed.
Soltz routinely attacked President Trump while he was his Commander-in-Chief. Soltz even labeled Trump a traitor and called for his impeachment. Soltz referred to Trump as reckless for pulling out of the Iranian nuclear deal and for killing Iranian terrorist leader Soleimani. Trump's projection of U.S. strength on the world stage rather than negotiating with terrorists didn’t meet with approval by Soltz—which he made well known all over the media.
In 2024, Soltz proudly endorsed Harris-Walz claiming they were "the most formidable ticket Democrats have had in years." It's hard to imagine any veteran's organization praising Tim Walz—the man who openly lied multiple times about his military service. Walz falsely claimed to have served in war and bragged about a rank he didn't earn. While VoteVets glorified Walz, they demonized military veteran J.D. Vance, calling him a "fraud" in a glaring example of partisanship.
VoteVets endorsed a far-left, Soros-backed prosecutor in Fairfax, Virginia, Steve Descano. Under Descano, soft on crime policies have taken hold. He refuses to prosecute most misdemeanor crimes and gave a despicable plea deal to a serial child molester. The monster did unspeakable things to two children, including the molesting of one child repeatedly between the ages of 5 and 10. Thanks to a Descano deal, the pedophile avoided the judge's recommended mandatory life sentence and will serve a fraction of the time.
That’s who VoteVets endorsed.
Most of the contributions to VoteVets don’t come from veterans. A majority come from groups such as House Majority PAC and Senate Majority PAC—far-left groups whose sole purpose is to gain majority Democrat control of Congress. Unions such as the National Association of Letter Carriers and Air Traffic Controllers are also large donors—hardly representative of veteran's issues. Here are a few other top donors to VoteVets since 2021:
- House Majority PAC: $2.6 million
- Senate Majority PAC: $550,000
- International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers: $100,000
- Union Plumbers and Pipefitters: $750,000
- International Union of Engineers: $250,000
The politicization of the military by Soltz and VoteVets is alarming. Instead of advocating for veteran's issues, the sole focus of VoteVets seems to be getting extremist Democrats elected. It's shameful that this organization uses military veterans as props to promote political agendas.
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