Julie Rodin Zebrak is a veteran D.C. attorney and a seasoned political consultant, organizer and fundraiser. She currently serves as Director of Digital Strategy & Outreach for Washington Monthly. Having spent nearly 20 years as an attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Zebrak left the federal government in 2016 to focus on political consulting. She is the founder and CEO of political action group Yes Moms Can and the co-founder of Mamas4Kamala. Since 2016, Zebrak has leveraged her government experience to become a leading voice in Washington and the media on law, financial crime and Democratic politics. Zebrak recently was honored with a “Fearlessly Using Your Voice Award” by She Rocks the World, a non-profit which trains teenage girls to use their voices to make an impact in the world.
Through Yes Moms Can and Mamas4Kamala, Zebrak transforms her expertise in the federal government, policy-making and politics to organize moms around the country in support of progressive candidates. An adept political operative, Zebrak also consults and trains campaigns, including the DNC’s Women’s Leadership Forum, on how to engage moms as campaign volunteers and candidate ambassadors.
Prior to founding Yes Moms Can, Zebrak served as Senior Advisor to the Deputy Director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) at the U.S. Department of the Treasury. While at FinCEN, Zebrak helped lead the organization’s anti-money laundering policy, as well as regulatory and congressional efforts. She was also responsible for overseeing the agency’s operations including hiring, budget, structure and information technology.
Before joining the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Zebrak spent 18 years as an attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). She served as Deputy Chief of Staff to the Deputy Attorney General and as agency counsel for the Criminal Division. At DOJ, Zebrak served as a go-to lawyer for problem-solving throughout her tenure at DOJ. Zebrak is known for her operational abilities, exhibited within DOJ and beyond—from cutting through government bureaucracy to handling the most sensitive personnel and organizational matters. Her ability to build consensus and explain and understand complicated federal policies and bureaucracy, combined with her legal expertise, allowed her to serve as a bridge between attorneys and professional and management personalities throughout her time with DOJ. Zebrak led Criminal Division and Deputy Attorney General recruitment efforts, and served as an advocate for diversity and inclusion at the Department by leading the DOJ’s Diversity and Inclusion Speaker Series.
Zebrak currently serves as a respected voice on law, politics and financial crime. She is a contributing writer for Washington Monthly, and frequent contributor to outlets including CNN, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The New York Times, The New Yorker, Politico, Slate, The Daily Beast, USA Today, MSNBC, Vanity Fair, and Vox. Zebrak has appeared on MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show, All In with Chris Hayes, and Hardball with Chris Matthews and published op-eds in Politico, The Hill, and Just Security. She is also a prominent progressive voice on social media, where Zebrak frequently speaks about political issues to her over 50,000 followers.
Zebrak is the co-founder of Women Lawyers Connection D.C., a speakers series aimed at mentoring female lawyers in Washington, D.C. from both the public and private sectors. She is also on the board of Lean In, D.C. Chapter and on the KID Museum Committee for the Future. A graduate of Tufts University, Zebrak earned her J.D. at the George Washington University Law School. Zebrak lives and works in Bethesda, Maryland.