SOMERVILLE - A Navy helicopter pilot who flew night missions in the middle of the ocean with no margin for error, Rebecca Bennett believes in gutting through difficult situations to complete the mission, and right now, she wants to challenge and defeat U.S. Rep. Tom Kean, Jr., and set a new course for America and the 7th Congressional District.

"I'm a patriot," said Bennett. "I love this country. It's why I joined the military. It's why I'm doing this [seeking the Democratic nomination in her run for Congress] now. Throughout my entire life, I've run at the biggest hardest, problems."

She's also a mom, and with that in mind, she poses a question.

"What version of the country are we going to leave for our children and for my daughters?" asked Bennett of Bridgewater, over coffee with InsiderNJ in downtown Somerville, at the heart of the 7th District.

The candidate said she was on active duty in the military when Trump won the 2016 presidential contest. The outcome of the election surprised Bennett, who had been making her favorite meal in preparation for a Hillary Clinton victory. "I thought we were going to be celebrating the election of the first woman commander in chief," she said.  When she mustered out, she immersed herself in grassroots volunteering.

When Trunp defeated Kamala Harris in 2024, "Two days afterwards I felt this calling and I told my husband I have to run for office now. Here we are in this purple, moderate district with a chance to flip the seat and take some principled leadership to Washington."

Bennett wants this mission.

She has church community roots, which inculcated a strong sense of service. She does not hail from a military family, but she chose an ROTC path for herself to fulfill a service calling. She served for over 16 years, piloting the Navy version of the Blackhawk helicopter (the MH-60 Seahawk), and building esprit de corps with Americans from all over the country, from divergent backgrounds, all of whom came together for the sake of the mission.

What did she learn?

She saw hardships and struggles of fellow members of the military, her brothers and sisters, and felt the deeper convictions of service to them. She also learned that it is harder to land on a smaller ship than it is to land on an aircraft carrier. When she talks about the Navy and about the melting pot of the military and the mission critical attitudes of servicemembers dedicated to one another, and to a better world, Bennett expresses herself with infectious energy.

"There is nothing like it," she said of the Navy.

She sees Congress as another opportunity for what is ultimately the same kind of service, in this case aimed at helping a deteriorated middle class. "This is my life," Bennett told InsiderNJ. "I don't come from a political or wealthy family. My life is the American Dream, truly, in the sense that I worked two jobs while in ROTC. My question is how do we help people achieve their version of the American Dream."

The married mother of two daughters, with her oldest in public school and her younger girl in daycare, Bennett describes the "astronomical amount of money" most people find themselves spending just for the basics, like food, education, daycare, and healthcare. In policy terms, Bennett, who started her healthcare career at Johnson and Johnson and later moved to digital healthcare, "I would have voted to extend the ACA (Affordable Care Act) subsidies. I have a friend who owns a small business and his family is getting healthcare through exchange. [Under assault from Trump], his premium has gone from $600 to $2,300 per month. So, let's start by not taking healthcare away from people."

She does not support Trump's tariffs, which have only served to drive up the costs of goods for residents of the 7th District.

"My message of affordability is different from Tom Kean, Jr.'s because of my life," Bennett said. "I'm not a trust fund kid who never had to work a day in his life. They ran on that - on affordability issues - but that's not what they're doing. They're doing nothing to solve these problems."

She cites the President's so-called "big, beautiful bill," which "took things away from healthcare, and clean energy manufacturing." She notes, too, the GOP's attack on the Gateway Tunnel project, which Trump bragged about terminating as a vengeful act against Democratic Party leadership.

"Transportation is critical to the district and Tom Kean, Jr. is not standing up for us the way we deserve," she said.

A reclusive and remote representative who eschews town halls and squirms in the presence of reporters, Republican Kean faces the prospect a very galvanized opposition next year. Multiple candidates have stepped forward to run in the Democratic Primary in a district that Democrat Mikie Sherrill won in November. One or two of her Democratic rivals note that Bennett did not grow up in the 7th, or in New Jersey, and make the case that - after Sherrill, another Navy helicopter pilot - voters may have helicopter hero fatigue.

"I've only been able to choose where I would live as an adult once and this is the place we came to put down roots and our daughters are thriving here," said the congressional candidate. "I am a proud transplant."

She said she loves the people, people she has gotten to know, for example, as her daughters' girl scout troop leader.

As for voter combat angst over the scudding din of copter blades, "13 women veterans have served in the House," she said. Not many.

"I believe I'm the best general election candidate, and the polling data shows that Democrats who are veterans outperform other Democrats by six points."

As the party primary contender who to date raised the most money (by far) for her congressional candidacy, Bennett makes no apologies. "I'm not taking any corporate money," she said. "I have signed the End Citizens United pledge. I have divested my individual stocks, for I believe an elected member of congress should divest. I don't own individual stocks. Everything is in mutual or index funds. Organizations like VoteVets do support veterans running for office, and I have raised resources through my life story and people see a real opportunity to flip this seat. Kean is raising a million a quarter and Democrats need the resources to take him on and flip this seat. Our plan is to make it clear how what he's doing - or not doing - is impacting everyone in the critical areas of healthcare, education, and transportation."

Bennett welcomes the primary.

"Primaries are good, they're healthy, and they ultimately build a stronger candidate," she said.

But how does she win this one?

"Our plan on how we're going to win is we're going to outwork everybody and we will continue to build support through fundraising and by being on the ground listening, to go fight for everybody," Bennett said.

Not only through the military, but as a girl playing soccer, she built a depth of understanding of the team concept, and she speaks enthusiastically about her campaign team now. As for the stamina demand of a long ground game, the future Navy flyer got used to running back in those early years, playing outside midfield. That's what you do when you play that position. You run.

Air game. Ground game.

Bennett says she's ready on both fronts, and looking for volunteers.