Maura Keller served in the US Army for 26 years, rising through the ranks from an enlisted military police officer to lieutenant colonel. She later worked in health care at the Atlanta VA. She now wants to represent Georgia’s 3rd Congressional District. In an exclusive interview with HT.com, she spoke about her life, her campaign, and her views on the Iran war.
Why she joined the army, and then politics
As per Keller, her father always spoke well of the military. She wanted to be in law enforcement as a young girl. After one year of college, she decided to join the army, as it would pay for her education. She joined at 17.
After retiring, she worked as a strategic analyst for about 10 years. Then she went back to school and started a new career in health care. She worked as a nuclear medicine technologist and ended up at the VA (Department of Veterans Affairs).
There, she saw veterans struggle to get appointments, benefits and good care. “For every veteran that I help, there are 100, 500 of you out there that’s not getting that help,” she said. When she could not fix the problems, she chose to run for Congress.
“When you see something, we say something, but we also do something,” she said of her military training.
{{/usCountry}}“When you see something, we say something, but we also do something,” she said of her military training.
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Her campaign
Keller ran in 2024 and lost. She said that time she was a first-time candidate in a newly redrawn district with more Republican areas, and she got no support. According to Keller, many rural voters told her they did not vote because they felt their voice would not be heard.
She said things are different this time. As per Keller, about 23,000 people voted in 2024, but almost 56,000 came out this time. She also said many Republicans have told her they feel ignored by their current representative’s office and that she has earned their vote.
Her top issues are pay, health care costs, tariffs and data centers.
According to Keller, the federal minimum wage has not gone up in over 17 years, and she wants to raise pay. She also wants lower health care costs, and said people should not have to “roll the dice and hope we don’t get sick.” As per Keller, tariffs and the Iran war have pushed up the cost of groceries, housing and farming, and both need to stop.
On data centers, Keller said they became an issue in her district in 2025. She said many people did not know about the projects because they are approved at local meetings. She said it is a bipartisan issue. “It’s not that we’re saying no to data centers,” she said. “So we are trying to say not in our backyard. That is the motto.”
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Being a woman in the military
Keller joined the army in 1978 as a military police officer. She was just 18 when she faced her first big test.
According to Keller, there was a rule at her first posting that women could not work alone. They also could not work with another woman.
One day, her male partner fell sick and had to go to the hospital. Keller was told to do gate duty by herself. She refused and said that the rule did not allow it, so they would have to find her a partner. They said everyone was busy and that it was fine “this time.” Keller said no.
The next morning, she got a counseling statement. But she said her point was made. As per Keller, the rule was changed because her leaders could not explain why a woman could not work alone or with another woman.
Keller criticizes Hegseth over women, diversity in the military
Keller said when she was promoted to major, a fellow major congratulated her. But he then said many deserving men had missed out because “we have to promote so many women and so many blacks.” As per Keller, people always made it seem that her success came from a quota and not from her own work.
She said the same thinking is back today. As per Keller, Hegseth removed General CQ Brown, a four-star general who is Black. She said Hegseth wrote in his book that “we will never know if he got promoted because of his competence, or because of the color of his skin.”
Keller also said Hegseth has fired and removed many women. According to her, this makes people wonder if women earned their promotions or got them only because they were women. “He is, like I say, destroying the military from within,” she said.
Keller has spoken about this before. In an opinion piece, she wrote that in her 26 years in service, she met the Army’s standard at every step. She said it angers her to hear Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth suggest that standards were lowered for women. “The standard is the standard,” she wrote.
As per Keller, Hegseth said in a 2024 podcast interview, before he took office, that “men in those positions are more capable.” She also wrote that he later announced a policy to return every designated combat arms position to “the highest male standard.” Keller questioned why it is called that.
Her views on Iran war
Keller said the Iran war is hurting Americans’ wallets. As per Keller, the war has driven up costs for farmers, like diesel and fertilizer. She also wants to stop the Trump administration’s tariffs. According to her, they push up the price of groceries and housing materials like timber and steel.
“It’s no longer affordability. It’s survivability because everything around you went up,” she said.
On the war itself, Keller said, “this administration still has yet to tell us what that mission and objective is.” She says, Trump, Defense Secretary Hegseth and Marco Rubio each gave different reasons for going to war at the start. She called this the first red flag. She also said there is no exit plan.
Her message to voters
Keller said she wants voters to learn who is on the ballot and what each candidate stands for. She said she meets people over calls, texts and even at coffee shops.
“In the military, your word is your bond,” she said, adding that trust is a big issue as many people believe all politicians lie. She promised to stay reachable after winning. “I’m your megaphone in Washington,” she said. “I’m your neighbor.”