Air Force veteran wins primary, runs to become the only Black woman Republican in Congress

Jennifer-Ruth Green, an Air Force veteran, won the Republican primary in Indiana's 1st Congressional District Tuesday, entering a general election contest in which she is vying to become the only Black woman Republican in Congress.

"I will fight for Republican principles and show how they benefit all Americans regardless of our differences," Green told Fox News Digital in a statement early Wednesday after her primary victory Tuesday night. 

"As an African American woman, and the only African American Republican woman in the House if elected, I can be a different and more effective messenger to communicate conservative principles to voters who don’t typically support Republicans." Rep. Mia Love, R-Utah, became the first Black woman elected to Congress as a Republican, and she served from 2015 to 2019.

Green insisted that the crises America faces under President Biden should unite Americans of all backgrounds.

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"People of all backgrounds and colors can now see how bad the Biden-Pelosi agenda is for America," she said. "Inflation is the highest it’s been in over 40 years. Gas prices have hit record highs. Many young people wonder if they’ll ever be able to afford to buy a house."

"The American people are smart and they can think for themselves," she added. "They don’t need to be told how to vote based on age, race or gender. Americans of all races are coming to recognize that we were better off 18 months ago than we are today." 

"I support giving people a hand up, not a hand out," Green insisted. "Instead of judging our welfare programs based on how many people they help, we should judge them by how many people they get back on their feet and make self-sufficient." Her campaign platform calls for fiscal responsibility, free-market reforms, and limits on government regulations.

Green also condemned Democrats' position on abortion as "extreme" and "out of touch," stating that science supports a pro-life position. She also mentioned the disproportionate impact abortion has on the Black community.

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"I am unashamedly pro-life," she told Fox News Digital. "Science shows that life begins at conception and that a child in the womb is a distinct, developing, whole human being. I find the Washington Democrats’ position on abortion absolutely extreme and out of touch."

"The American people do not support abortion on demand up to the moment of birth at taxpayer expense," she added. "Abortion most negatively impacts the African-American community, and I will continue to speak out against it."

Green previously had condemned as "insulting" and "shameful" the claim that Black Americans can't or won't get IDs to vote. She said Black voters "are not a monolith" and insisted that Republicans can make inroads with them.

Green, a 2005 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, served as a mission commander for counterintelligence in Baghdad during Operation Iraqi Freedom. After her deployment, she served as deputy chief for a nuclear command post. She retired from the military after twelve years, but currently serves in the Indiana Air National Guard. 

She serves her community as an educator and founded MissionAero Pipeline, a non-profit reaching at-risk youth seeking to transform lives, inspire STEM careers, and set students on a path of learning in the aerospace industry.

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Green faces an uphill battle in Indiana's 1st Congressional District. A Republican has not won the seat since 1928. Frank Mrvan, the Democratic incumbent, won the 2020 election with 56.6% of the vote.

"Congratulations to Jennifer-Ruth Green on her primary victory," National Republican Congressional Committee Chair Tom Emmer said in a statement Tuesday. "Jennifer-Ruth is a trailblazer, a veteran, and the perfect candidate to flip this seat red in November."