{"id":4735,"date":"2026-01-24T23:19:47","date_gmt":"2026-01-24T23:19:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/auditcops2026.com\/?p=4735"},"modified":"2026-01-24T23:19:48","modified_gmt":"2026-01-24T23:19:48","slug":"military-expert-confirms-first-u-s-citizens-who-will-be-drafted-if-world-war-3-breaks-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/auditcops2026.com\/?p=4735","title":{"rendered":"Military expert confirms first U.S. citizens who will be drafted if World War 3 breaks out"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As global tensions continue to rise and the United States takes a more aggressive posture abroad, Americans are once again asking a question many believed belonged to the past: who would be drafted first if a major war breaks out?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the National Archives<\/a>, about 1.8 million men were selected during conscription to support American troops in Vietnam (1964 to 1973) \u2013 and 17,671 of those draftees were killed in combat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRegardless of whether someone volunteered or was drafted, we must honor all who answered the call of duty,\u201d Vietnam vet Joe Parsetich told Disabled American Veterans<\/a> (DAV) in 2023. \u201cTheir sacrifices were as important \u2013 and their blood was as red \u2013 as anyone\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though the last man was drafted into the military under the Selective Service System (SSS) on June 30, 1973 \u2013 and there\u2019s currently no active draft \u2013 the legal framework to reinstate one remains firmly in place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Required registration<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Under federal law, nearly all male U.S. citizens and male immigrants are required to register with the Selective Service within 30 days of turning 18, regardless of their immigration status. While late registration is permitted up until a man\u2019s 26th<\/sup> birthday, failing to register at all is considered a felony and can carry serious legal penalties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the official SSS<\/a> website, individuals who do not register can face \u201ca fine of up to $250,000 and\/or five years in prison,\u201d along with additional consequences such as being barred from federal student aid, job training programs, and many government jobs. Immigrants may also face delays of up to five years in U.S. citizenship proceedings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Improve force strength<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If the draft were reinstated, the U.S. government would follow a structured legal process. The first step would require Congress to amend the Military Selective Service Act, which would give the president the authority to begin conscription. Once Congress acts, the SSS would be activated, and induction orders will be issued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is where the question of who would be drafted first becomes critical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lottery determines induction<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

According to the guidelines, the draft would begin with a national lottery \u2013 a high-profile, public event that would be live-streamed across the country. During this process, birthdays are randomly drawn to determine the order in which eligible men would be called for service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the official guidelines, \u201cthe first to receive induction orders are those whose 20th<\/sup> birthday falls during the year of the lottery.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If more service members are required, the draft expands outward \u2013 calling on men who are 21, then 22, 23, up until 26, \u201cat which time he is over the age of liability. Younger men would not be called in that year until men in the 20-25 age group are called.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once an individual\u2019s lottery number is called, he would report to a Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS) for extensive physical, mental, and moral evaluations to determine whether they are fit for service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He then either heads to boot camp or returns home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exemption not guaranteed<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Importantly, standards can change during national emergencies. In previous wars, requirements related to fitness, education, and criminal history have been adjusted as manpower needs increased. Being overweight, lacking a high school diploma, or having a felony conviction does not guarantee exemption, particularly if the military faces personnel shortages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen it comes to World War III, they\u2019re going to be going after 18- to 25-year-old men. If they get desperate, that is where people need to start worrying,\u201d warns a former Army combat medic in a YouTube clip titled, \u201cWho Would be Drafted.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis means if you are overweight and you don\u2019t meet [physical training] standards, they\u2019re going to take you. If you have misdemeanor, sometimes even felonies, they\u2019ll take you. No high school diploma, they\u2019re going to take you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rapid delivery of service<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Selective Service System is designed to move quickly once authorized. According to its own guidelines, \u201cSelective Service must deliver the first inductees to the military within 193 days from the onset of a crisis and the law being updated to authorize a draft.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That timeline underscores how rapidly a draft could shift from a legal decision in Washington to reality for young Americans.<\/p>\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As global tensions continue to rise and the United States takes a more aggressive posture abroad, Americans are once again asking a question many believed belonged to the past: who would be drafted first if a major war breaks out? According to the National Archives, about 1.8 million men were selected during conscription to support American troops in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4736,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4735","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/auditcops2026.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4735","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/auditcops2026.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/auditcops2026.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/auditcops2026.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/auditcops2026.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4735"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/auditcops2026.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4735\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4737,"href":"https:\/\/auditcops2026.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4735\/revisions\/4737"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/auditcops2026.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4736"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/auditcops2026.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4735"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/auditcops2026.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4735"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/auditcops2026.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4735"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}