"Jerry Nadler is a gifted constitutional scholar and the conscience of the House."
-- Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, 52nd Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
Congressman Jerrold Nadler represents New York’s 12th Congressional District. Rep. Nadler is a graduate of Crown Heights Yeshiva, Stuyvesant High School, Columbia University and Fordham Law School. He lives on the Upper West Side of Manhattan with his wife, Joyce Miller.
Rep. Nadler began his career in public service in 1976 in the New York State Assembly. Representing the Upper West Side, he served as a Democratic Assemblyman for 16 years and played a significant role in shaping New York State law concerning child support enforcement and domestic abuse, as well as making major contributions to housing, transportation and consumer protection policy in the state. In 1992, Rep. Nadler was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in a special election and has served in Congress ever since. He currently serves on the House Judiciary Committee and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and is the Dean of the New York Delegation.
During his time in Congress, Rep. Nadler has been a national leader on civil rights, a strong defender of civil liberties, and a devoted champion of women’s reproductive health. He has consistently been recognized as one of Israel’s strongest congressional supporters and has used his position on the House Judiciary Committee and as Co-Chair of the Congressional Jewish Caucus to combat the rise in antisemitism.
While Rep. Nadler has been at the forefront of many of the biggest national issues of the last few decades his focus and passion for New York City have never wavered.
As a senior member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Rep. Nadler is a leading voice on transportation issues and a fierce advocate of New York’s mass transit systems. His efforts have brought billions of dollars of federal funding to New York to improve New York City’s roads, ports, railways and transit systems. He has championed the second avenue subway, congestion pricing, and a rail freight tunnel among other major city projects.
Congressman Nadler served as the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee from 2019 to 2023. As Chairman, he led the effort to preserve the rule of law and to provide for a more just society that respects the civil rights and civil liberties of all Americans.
Under his leadership, the Judiciary Committee responded to some of our nation’s biggest recent challenges.
Rep. Nadler led the oversight efforts of the first Trump administration which led to the impeachment of President Donald Trump for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress – articles of impeachment authored and introduced by Rep. Nadler and passed by the House of Representatives. Rep. Nadler served as a House impeachment manager during the Senate trial of President Trump during his first impeachment. After the January 6 attacks on the U.S. Capitol, Rep. Nadler paved the way for the speedy impeachment of the President for incitement of insurrection. He led the floor debate which culminated with House passage of an article of impeachment on January 13, 2021.
Congressman Nadler has a long history of leadership on the Judiciary committee. In addition to serving as Chairman, he also served as Ranking Member from 2017 to 2019 and again from 2023 to 2025. Congressman Nadler is currently the Ranking Member of the Judiciary Committee’s Administrative State, Regulatory Reform, and Antitrust Subcommittee. He previously served for 13 years as Chairman or Ranking Member of the Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties. In addition, he served as the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet.
As the epidemic of gun violences rages on, he advanced historic legislation to keep Americans safe in their communities, leading to enactment of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act—the first significant gun safety legislation enacted in a generation. When the Supreme Court threatened to undermine protections for same sex marriage, he enshrined marriage equality in the law with passage of the Respect for Marriage Act. When the nation watched in horror as George Floyd was brutalized by police, he advanced legislation to hold law enforcement accountable, while also working to ensure that our communities have the tools and resources to keep our citizens safe. As Republican voter suppression efforts took hold across the country, he passed legislation named after his late colleague, Rep. John Lewis, to protect this most fundamental right to vote. He worked to repair our broken immigration system with legislation to protect Dreamers and to prevent another Muslim ban. He brought forward the Equality Act, the first comprehensive civil rights legislation protecting the LGBTQ community. He worked to provide justice to victims of the deadly September 11th attacks and other victims of terrorism. And he worked to preserve access to justice in the federal courts, protect consumers from corporate abuses, lower prescription drug prices, and preserve a strong intellectual property system that promotes innovation and drives economic growth.
As Chairman of the Committee, he also shined a light on critical issues, such as threats to reproductive freedom and bodily autonomy in the wake of the Dobbs decision, the need for further criminal justice reform and ending mass incarceration, the ethics crisis at the Supreme Court, and proposals to strengthen our antitrust laws to preserve and promote healthy competition in the marketplace.
Despite strong differences with his Republican colleagues, he also achieved important bipartisan victories, such as modernizing our music licensing system, prohibiting forced arbitration in sexual assault and sexual harassment cases, and multiple meaningful attempts to roll back the abuses of the surveillance state.
Congressman Nadler is the author of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, legislation signed into law by President Joe Biden in 2022 to prohibit employment practices that discriminate against making reasonable accommodations for employees affected by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical issues.
Rep. Nadler has always prioritized helping his constituents. His constituent service staff works tirelessly to help constituents navigate the complex and daunting world of government services by streamlining access to healthcare, the IRS, Social Security Administration, and Veterans Affairs. Immigration and citizenship issues are a particular priority as the district includes large communities of new immigrants. Congressman Nadler’s robust community relations program has long played a key role in preserving affordable housing, stopping senseless overdevelopment, reducing crime, and enhancing our children’s educational opportunities. Additionally, the Congressman has brought billions of dollars to the district for its infrastructure, social welfare, and cultural needs.
Congressman Nadler’s record has earned him scores of awards and praise from various progressive groups, including the League of Conservation Voters, Planned Parenthood, the NAACP, the Human Rights Campaign, the Brady Campaign to End Gun Violence, Children’s Defense Fund, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the American Federation of Teachers. In the TIME Magazine Person Of The Year issue, Jerry Nadler was named as a Teddy Award recipient for political courage.
Learn more about Congressman’s Nadler’s record of accomplishment on the following issues:
Civil Rights, LGBTQ+ Rights, Women’s Rights
Civil Liberties
Transportation and Infrastructure
Supporting the Arts and Artists
Constituent Services and Community Relations
Supporting Israel and Combating Anti-Semitism
