WASHINGTON (NewsNation) — The U.S. Army announced its record-breaking recruitment numbers, marking its most productive December in over a decade, with some crediting President Donald Trump for the boost.
This marks a significant turnaround for the branch, which has faced challenges in recent years in recruiting enough young people and has implemented major changes to its recruitment programs.
Officials now say December 2024 was their best December in 15 years, with nearly 350 soldiers enlisted every day that month. Army recruiters shared on X, “Our recruiters have one of the toughest jobs – inspiring the next generation of #Soldiers to serve. Congratulations and keep up the great work!”
USPS resumes accepting packages from China, Hong Kong
In the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, 2024, the Army met its recruiting goal of 55,000 and began to rebuild its delayed entry pool. About 24% of those recruits came out of the Future Soldier Prep Course.
Army to add more training units
The Army, hoping to ride this high, is set to significantly expand the number of recruits they can send to spring training. By April, the service reportedly expects to add 10 more training units, which could accommodate up to 9,600 new recruits annually.
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.
In 2023, there were several initiatives to try and help lower-performing recruits — including adding courses like the Future Soldier Prep Course, at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, to help them meet the military academic and physical standards to move on to basic training.
Is the Trump administration taking credit for the change?
Pete Hegseth, Trump’s newly confirmed secretary of defense, touted the Army’s recruitment numbers, writing on X, “BOTTOM LINE: America’s youth want to serve under the bold & strong ‘America First’ leadership of @realDonaldTrump.”
He also attributed the rise in recruitment to the new administration during his confirmation hearing.
“We’ve already seen it in recruiting numbers,” Hegseth said. “There’s already been a surge since President Trump won the election.”
Army Secretary Christine Wormuth told the Associated Press last month that the Army is on track to meet its 2025 enlistment goals, expecting 81,000 new recruits. She said she expects the Future Soldier Prep Course will contribute about 30% of this year’s recruits.
Here’s how the Pentagon could change under Hegseth
Hegseth has promised to remove “woke” programs from the military, referring to an over-emphasis on diversity. But Army leaders have stated that “wokeness” hasn’t played a role in the recruitment increase.
According to Army data, recruiting numbers have been increasing steadily over the past year, with the highest total in August 2024 before the November election. Army officials closely track recruiting numbers.
NewsNation reached out to the Pentagon for comment on Hegseth’s remarks, but they declined to provide any additional information at this time.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
