Senator Julie Adams Contact information

Julie E. Adams was born on February 24, 1977, in Iowa City, Iowa. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from Luther College in 1999 and a Master of Arts in education from the University of Iowa in 2002. As an undergraduate, Adams participated in a Luther College semester-long internship program in Washington, D.C., during which she interned with the Children’s Defense Fund.

After graduating from college, Adams took a break from working toward obtaining a teaching certificate to help run Iowa Rep. James Leach’s congressional campaign. Following Leach’s re-election, Adams went to Washington, D.C., where she served for 17 months as an aide to First Lady Laura Bush, before joining the staff of then-Senate Majority Whip, Mitch McConnell, as deputy communications director in 2003.

From September 2007 to January 2009, Adams worked in the East Wing of the White House Office as a spokesperson for First Lady Laura Bush. Adams then served six years as director of administration and member relations for then-Senate Minority Leader McConnell.

Adams began her term as the 33rd Secretary of the Senate on January 6, 2015, during the 114th Congress. She is the seventh woman to hold the position. She left the position on March 1, 2021.

Throughout her career, Adams has been known for her dedication to public service and her efforts to modernize office procedures. She has also been recognized for designing publications that are timeless and therefore more cost-effective. In 2015, she became the first secretary to chair the Joint Congressional Continuity Board tasked with emergency preparedness and continuity of operations.

Adams also collaborated with the clerk of the House to establish expanded archival storage facilities for the official records of Congress and served as co-chair, with the clerk, of the Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress, a position held by every secretary since 1990.