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This month, Adam Bernbaum begins his first term as a member of the Washington House of Representatives. The 32-year-old Democrat represents Washington’s District 24-Position 1, a region he calls “the only truly rural district in Washington state that elects Democrats.”
The election victory comes just two years after earning a PhD in the Schar School of Policy and Government’s Political Science program at George Mason University. But you would not know that from reading his campaign material.
The lack of a mention of his PhD is not an oversight. Bernbaum, who not only represents the province but also hails from rural Washington, was aware that his constituents might see his degree as something he is not: a showoff.
“And I was running in a pretty rural district, and I think there are a lot of people there you can message to individually who respect education and view it as a positive. But from a mass communication perspective, there can be a perceived stereotype about ‘ivory towers’ or being cloistered and out of touch.”
Clearly, he has learned how to read the room. While this is Bernbaum’s first major election, he has spent his career in public service, working for nonprofits in behavioral health and criminal justice policy fields. He also spent time as a legislative aide to Democratic state senator Kevin Van De Wege, a position he left to run for his own office.
Bernbaum attended George Mason in person before returning home after his 2022 graduation. He came to the Schar School, he said, after finding a faculty well-versed in his chosen subjects—nationalism and Central Asian politics.
A mentor at the University of Washington, where he earned his bachelor of arts degree in political science, helped narrow down schools that had “the strong research interest I was articulating,” he said. “And George Mason was near Washington, D.C., and I love politics, as you can probably tell by the way I’ve spent my life so far. It made sense and it was a good fit.”
He was not disappointed. “I really love the faculty in the program,” he said. “I felt like they all do a fantastic job.”
“As a student, Adam was extremely intellectually curious,” said Associate Professor Robert McGrath, who served as Bernbaum’s dissertation advisor. “He would read all the time, even things that were outside of his scholarly interest. I think this made his dissertation more interesting and broadly applicable than it would have been if he put on intellectual blinders.”
Bernbaum takes the same view to public service, McGrath added.
“Adam likely has his own ideas about effective policy solutions to pursue in the legislature, but he is not arrogant or unwavering about them,” he said. “He will communicate with the people, businesses, and groups in his district to broaden his own perspective on legislative matters, just as he would read alternative approaches in his scholarly work.”
Winning the election is no surprise to the professor: “I have no doubt that Adam will be an effective legislator and, as someone who studies state legislatures, I can’t wait to follow his trajectory,” McGrath said.
While Bernbaum focused on nationalism and violence for his dissertation—specifically how local municipalities respond to mob violence—his immediate legislative priorities are affordable housing and healthcare for seniors.
“Having housing is the most important thing in my district,” he said. “And it’s the oldest legislative district by the median age of people who live in Washington State. There are a ton of challenges delivering healthcare services in a rural community like that.”
His first committee assignment in his first two-year term is serving as vice chair of the transportation committee, a fiscal committee that manages the state’s transportation budget. “I’m very grateful for that,” he said.
And while it would be woefully premature to announce a reelection campaign, he already knows he’s running again.
“It’s going to take a year to get to know the caucus dynamics,” he said.
After the election, he was sworn into office by his wife, Hannah, who fulfills the requirement for such a duty by being a notary public as part of her job. With any luck, she’ll get to do it again in two years.