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Adam Smith
Washington, 9th
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Adam Smith was born on June 15, 1965 and has lived his entire life in the Ninth District. He grew up in the SeaTac area of South King County and graduated from Tyee High School in 1983. |
Adam's father, Ben, worked as a ramp serviceman at SeaTac airport and was active in the local Machinists' Union. He taught Adam the value of community involvement, public service, and participating in our democracy.
Adam worked his way through college loading trucks for United Parcel Service and graduated from Fordham University in 1987. He attended the University of Washington Law School and earned his law degree in 1990.
Wanting to give something back to the community and represent the people he grew up with, Adam ran for the State Senate in 1990. At only 25 years of age, he became the youngest State Senator in the country when he took office in 1991.
Criminal justice issues captured much of Adam's time and attention. He served as Chair of the State Senate Law and Justice Committee and as a Prosecutor for the City of Seattle, working on domestic violence and drunk driving cases, when the State Senate was not in session.
He developed a reputation as a centrist legislator focused on practical problem-solving. In 1996, he was elected to Congress.
In Congress, Smith has continued to provide thoughtful, common sense leadership. He is a leader of the centrist House New Democrat Coalition and aggressively seeks innovative, market-based solutions to our country's challenges. Adam has become one of the House's experts on technology, telecommunications, and economic growth issues, including digital signature, broadband, and export controls.
Understanding that a key component of economic growth is a government that has a balanced budget and that is paying down its debt, Adam is also known as a fiscal conservative, who has taken tough votes to balance the budget and reduce the debt.
As a Member of the House Armed Services Committee, Adam is an advocate of modernizing the military, streamlining procurement practices, and of encouraging the Department of Defense to leverage new technologies. He also believes that our Armed Forces must have the most sophisticated and advanced weapons systems in the world. Utilization of technology both in the Department of Defense and in the field are top priorities.
Adam also serves on the House International Relations Committee and the Subcommittee on Asian and the Pacific. He is committed to a foreign policy strategy that encourages democracy and human rights around the world and maximizes America's national security.
Throughout his service to his country and the people of the South Puget Sound region, Adam has remained committed to the idea that government should be more efficient and more responsive to the needs of people. Adam has earned a reputation as someone who avoids partisan bickering and needless government bashing, and instead works hard to solve real problems that matter.
Adam Smith's commitment to the Ninth District and his understanding that constant communication is the key to good representative government, Adam goes door-to-door in the Ninth District, holds town hall meetings, and has established many Advisory Councils that he meets with on a quarterly basis, such as the Small Business Advisory Council, Technology Advisory Council, Senior Advisory Council, and Agriculture Adisory Council. These Councils are always open to new members, and Adam has found them to be an invaluable source of ideas, suggestions, and problem-solving.
Adam married Sara Bickle-Eldridge, a native of Spokane, in August of 1993. Sara, a graduate of Seattle University Law School, and Adam are both involved in community affairs and organizations throughout the region. They have two children: Kendall Charlotte, born in July of 2000; and Jack Evers, born in June of 2003. They live in Northeast Tacoma.
Rep. Adam Smith's Official Website
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