ASKING ALUMNI

ALUMNI asking tjTODAY sat down with Noah Bardash, Chief of Staff to Va. Delegate Dan Helmer, to learn about his rise into politics and his message to young people by Vikram Achuthan and Pratika Katiyar

Noah Bardash graduated from student at TJ. I served as vice president amount of urgency or airtime as others. Jefferson in 2013 and went of the Young Democrats club in When young people get involved and on to major in both Systems my senior year. President Obama's say “this is an issue I care about,” they Engineering and International Studies reelection campaign also took place can really make a difference and help at Washington University in St. Louis. during my senior year, so that was determine elections. I would encourage Though not always set on a career in actually the first campaign that I had the whole TJ student politics, his experiences at Jefferson been involved in. I learned the nuts and body to reach out to offices like ours to and beyond helped lead to his current bolts of phone banking and canvassing say, this is an issue that matters to me role as Chief of Staff to Delegate Dan and voter outreach and all that goes and I'm going to be watching how you Helmer, who represents a portion of into working on a campaign and vote on this issue. While the top of the Prince William County and Fairfax building a grassroots movement. It was ticket, the presidential race, gets the County in the Va. House of Delegates. a very powerful experience for me. lion's share of the attention, these local and state races have a huge impact on tjTODAY: Can you describe your tjTODAY: Did you always want to go our daily lives, on budgets, on criminal current role as Chief of Staff for into politics? justice, and policing reform. Delegate Dan Helmer? NB: There are a number of different NB: I was never dead set on working in politics but I have always had an tjTODAY: Looking forward, what are responsibilities that fall into several interest in politics. I would say that your goals for your career in politics? categories. The primary focus of a until the 2016 election, I didn't think NB: I'm definitely interested in climate legislator is to serve the communities that I was going to be pursuing this change and voting rights, and I'm really that legislator represents. Right now as a career. But in the aftermath of proud of some of the work that the we're in the middle of a year which has that election four years ago, I thought Virginia legislature has done on both been full of a lot of hardship for many about the values that are important to of those issues. I'm looking forward people. There's been a lot of folks who me and that was part of what led me to continuing that advocacy on those have been reaching out to our office and to seek out this internship for Senator issues and whether that remains directly this year is a particularly challenging Claire McCaskill in 2017, then to take in electoral politics permanently, or time. On the legislative front, for the that into a career after graduating from elsewhere, is something I'm still looking first time in decades both the House university. at. But I know that I intend to remain and the Senate were under democratic active in community building and leadership, and the General Assembly tjTODAY: Why is it important for organizing, especially on those issues took action that Virginians want on young people to get involved in that are most important. voting rights, climate action, gun safety politics, and particularly, politics at measures, and women's rights. the state and local level? This interview has been condensed YOUTH VOTE tjTODAY: What types of activities did you do at TJ that allowed you to discover your passion for politics? Any certain classes? NB: A lot of my interest in activism and in politics did start when I was a NB: I think that young people's voices are an incredibly, incredibly important part of politics and unfortunately young people don't vote, at the rates that some older Americans do. As a result of that, you see issues that are important to young people don't always get the same and edited.