Newark, NJ – Two daughters of U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill were among only three New Jersey students admitted to the U.S. Naval Academy this year, joining 13 other Garden State service academy appointees honored at a June 13 send-off reception hosted by Senator Cory Booker.
The sisters, Lincoln and Margaret Hedberg, graduated from Montclair Kimberley Academy. They entered Annapolis in July as members of the class of 2029.
Sherrill’s congressional office even issued a press release on the Naval Academy appointments, but did not note that two of the appointees were her own children.
Key Points
- Lincoln and Margaret Hedberg, daughters of Rep. Mikie Sherrill, accepted appointments to the Naval Academy.
- They were two of only three New Jersey students admitted in 2025.
- Senator Cory Booker hosted a statewide send-off reception for 13 appointees and their families.
Booker’s service academy reception
At the Newark event, Booker praised the appointees for “academic excellence, athletic endeavor, leadership, community service, and…profound belief in the wellbeing of our nation.”
The list of honorees included appointees to the U.S. Military Academy, Air Force Academy, Merchant Marine Academy, and the Naval Academy. The Hedberg sisters were recognized alongside fellow New Jersey Naval Academy selectee Brandon Park of Northern Valley Regional High School.
Academy admissions rules
The Department of Defense has emphasized that service academy admissions do not provide preferential treatment to children of members of Congress or military families. Graduates of the military academies also do not rate preferential treatment for their children or family members.
While preference is given to family members of veterans killed and wounded in action, all other candidates are chosen by merit.
Candidates must qualify through academic scores, fitness standards, leadership evaluations, and a limited nomination system.
With the appointments now official, Sherrill’s daughters will begin the path of midshipmen training that could lead to commissions as Navy officers.
For this New Jersey political family, service has become a family tradition. Sherrill’s husband Jason Hedberg is also a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy.
This week, the New York Post alleged Mr. Hedberg was also involved in the ongoing Naval Academy cheating scandal, but was not charged or disciplined. Sherrill was benched on graduation day for her role in the cheating scandal.
She maintains that her only infraction was not turning in her cheating classmates, but has so far refused to make her disciplinary record publicly available to fact check.
Sherrill’s two daughters raise the question of privilege for the congresswoman, leaving many to question which New Jersey students, perhaps even minority students, could have been pushed off the line for Sherrill’s two children.