This past December, Jacob Hammer ‘19 made his way up a hill again, except this time it was Capitol Hill, not the SLS hilltop. Hammer is currently working for Congressman Eugene Vindman of Virginia’s 7th Congressional District. Vindman is a retired Army and JAG Corps officer, SUNY Binghamton alum, and former White House Security Council member. 

Hammer’s interest in politics started in high school, with his first dive into political science being his Modern World History class at St. Luke’s. After his time at St. Luke’s, he earned a bachelor’s in Political Science with a minor in Psychology at Washington University in St. Louis, graduating with university honors in May of 2023. After graduation, he interned for the offices of Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Congressman Tom Suozzi (D-NY). He also worked for Invariant, a government relations firm representing clients in the technology sector, defense industry, and agricultural space, among a few areas. Hammer eventually began working with Vindman last May, as the 2024 election cycle was in full swing

Hammer first became interested in Vindman after seeing his involvement in the first impeachment of then-president Donald Trump in 2019-20. He admired his courage and devotion to the truth and, more importantly, to the U.S. Constitution. While job surfing as a young DC professional, Hammer sent an email to the Vindman campaign expressing his desire to gain campaign experience and assist to the best of his ability in keeping a critical House seat in the Democratic Party’s fold.  Initially, they responded appreciatively but did not have openings. Despite low expectations consistent with the unpredictability in a job search, just a few days passed when Hammer received a new email explaining that, coincidentally, the campaign had an opening for the job of “bodyman” and driver for the candidate and Call Time Manager (essentially a campaign finance assistant). After accepting this role, Hammer embarked on working side by side with candidate Vindman throughout his campaign. Despite VA-07 consistently being labeled as a toss-up seat as it had been in years prior, Vindman emerged as victor by a 4-point margin and joined the 119th Congress., Hammer’s current role only lasted through the campaign, and Hammer was in  in a period of limbo waiting to see if he had done enough during the campaign to secure himself a place in Vindman’s congressional office. Hammer had expressed interest in wanting to join Congressman-elect Vindman on the Hill, and, sure enough, Vindman responded by saying that he enjoyed working with Mr. Hammer, and that he wanted to find a place for him in his office. 

In the Vindman office, Hammer is currently a Staff Assistant. He coordinates tours of the White House and the Capitol, receives and logs constituent calls, manages interns, and completes many other small tasks to help keep the office running. Every day, Hammer hears from hundreds of Americans calling to voice their concerns and opinions. His job is both emotionally and physically taxing, but according to him, it is worth every second. Making it on the Hill is a difficult task, and Hammer’s success is certainly a noteworthy accomplishment.