Jamin Ben Raskin is an American attorney, law professor, and politician serving as the U.S. representative for Maryland’s 8th congressional district since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he served in the Maryland State Senate from 2007 to 2016. The district previously included portions of Montgomery County, a suburban county northwest of Washington, D.C., and extended through rural Frederick County to the Pennsylvania border. Since redistricting in 2022, Raskin’s district now encompasses only part of Montgomery County.
Profile Summary
| Full Name | Jamin Ben Raskin |
| Gender | Male |
| Nationality | Israelite |
| Date of Birth | December 13, 1962 |
| Profession | Lawyer and Politician |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Spouse | Sarah Bloom Raskin |
| Net Worth | $2-$5 million |
Early Life and Education of Jamie Raskin
Jamin Ben Raskin was born to a Jewish family in Washington, D.C., on December 13, 1962, to Barbara (née Bellman) Raskin and Marcus Raskin. His name is a variant of that of his paternal grandfather, Benjamin Raskin. His mother was a journalist and novelist, and his father was a former staff aide to President John F. Kennedy on the National Security Council, co-founder of the Institute for Policy Studies, and a progressive activist.
Raskin’s ancestors immigrated to the U.S. from Russia. He graduated from Georgetown Day School in 1979 at age 16, and magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Harvard College in 1983 with a Bachelor of Arts in government with concentration in political theory. In 1987, he received a J.D. degree magna cum laude from Harvard Law School, where he was an editor of the Harvard Law Review.
Diverse Career Fields of Jamie Raskin
Law Professor
Political Career
In 2006, Raskin was elected as a Maryland state senator for District 20, representing parts of Silver Spring and Takoma Park in Montgomery County. In 2012, he was named Senate majority whip and chaired the Montgomery County Senate Delegation and the Select Committee on Ethics Reform, and was a member of the Judicial Proceedings Committee.
Raskin sponsored bills advocating the repeal of the death penalty in Maryland, the expansion of the state ignition interlock device program, and the establishment of the legal guidelines for benefit corporations, a type of for-profit corporation that includes a material societal benefit in its bylaws and decision-making processes. A former board member of FairVote, he introduced and sponsored the first bill in the country for the National Popular Vote, a plan for an interstate compact to provide for presidential election by popular vote. Raskin long championed efforts to reform marijuana laws and legalize medical marijuana in Maryland. He introduced a medical marijuana bill in 2014 that was signed by Governor Martin O’Malley and went into effect in January 2015.
Marital and Personal Life of Jamie Raskin
Raskin is married to Sarah Bloom Raskin, who served as the Maryland Commissioner of Financial Regulation from 2007 to 2010. They live in Takoma Park, Maryland. President Barack Obama nominated Bloom Raskin to the Federal Reserve Board on April 28, 2010. On October 4, 2010, she was sworn in as a governor of the Federal Reserve Board by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke. President Joe Biden nominated her for chair of the Federal Reserve Board, but Republicans boycotted her committee hearing and Joe Manchin opposed her because of her views on the use of monetary policy to address climate change. Given that stalemate, she withdrew her nomination. She served as the United States Deputy Secretary of the Treasury from March 19, 2014, to January 20, 2017.
The Raskins have two daughters, Hannah and Tabitha, and a son, Tommy. On December 31, 2020, Raskin’s office announced that his son Tommy, a graduate of Montgomery Blair High School, a graduate of Amherst College, and a second-year student at Harvard Law School, had died at the age of 25. On January 4, 2021, Raskin and his wife posted a tribute to their son online that stated that, after a prolonged battle with depression, he had died by suicide. In a farewell note, Tommy said, “Please forgive me. My illness won today. Look after each other, the animals and the global poor. All my love, Tommy.” Tommy was buried on January 5, 2021. The next day, Raskin was in the Capitol with his daughter and son-in-law during the January 6 Capitol attack. Hours later, he began drafting an article of impeachment against President Trump, and six days later, House SpeakerNancy Pelosi named Raskin the lead manager of Trump’s second impeachment. His 2022 book Unthinkable: Trauma, Truth, and the Trials of American Democracy focuses on his son’s life and his preparation for the impeachment trial. Raskin has been vegetarian since 2009.
Jamie Raskin Net Worth
Jamie Raskin is a lawyer and politician from the United States. Raskin is a Democrat who has served as the United States Representative. He has a net worth of between $2-$5 million.
Conclusion
In May 2010, Raskin was diagnosed with colon cancer. He received six weeks of radiation and chemotherapy, and surgery to remove part of his colon, followed by more chemotherapy through early 2011.
In December 2022, Raskin announced that he had been diagnosed with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, and said he would undergo chemoimmunotherapy, which he completed in April 2023. On April 27, he said the cancer was in remission.
