Inspired to public service by his most important mentor in life, the great Black Minister Rev Peter Gomes, he joined the Marines in 2001, days after his college graduation and a few months before the attacks on 9/11. Leading a frontline infantry platoon in the first Marine company to enter Baghdad, he later worked to establish a free and independent Iraqi media, and served as a liaison to senior Iraqi military and political leaders for General Petraeus. While he was an outspoken critic of the Iraq War, he proudly served four tours, sharing the view of many of our servicemembers that he didn't want anyone to go in his place.

After returning home from Iraq, Seth used the G.I. Bill to earn joint degrees in business and public administration, and then became the managing director of Texas Central, building America's first high-speed rail line. But it wasn't long before he was called to serve once again, this time in his home district in Massachusetts.

Seth challenged the establishment with a platform of bringing a new generation of leadership to Washington, willing to fight for progressive values yet not afraid of bipartisanship. Named the Most Effective Freshman Democrat in his first term, Seth has consistently delivered results in a divided Washington. He is the only Member of Congress to earn three Democracy Awards from the Congressional Management Foundation, one in 2018 for Transparency, a second in 2020 for having the best constituent services in all of Congress, and a third in 2022 for Achievement in Innovation and Modernization. His legislation created the 988 National Suicide Lifeline, which is now live in all fifty states. Seth has delivered Faster Care for Veterans, modernized Government Travel, and delivered on ALS Disability Insurance. His American High-Speed Rail Act is the most ambitious and forward-thinking infrastructure package before Congress today, and his G.I. Bill Restoration Act would finally restore long-denied benefits to Black veterans of World War II.

Today, Seth sits on three committees. He is a member of the House Armed Services Committee where he serves as Ranking Member on the Subcommittee on Strategic Forces. At the beginning of the 118th Congress, he was selected by party leadership to sit on the new Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the U.S. and China, which was created to shape a diplomatic, economic, and military strategy toward the Chinese Communist Party that preserves American leadership and avoids war. As a member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Seth is the Congressional leader on high-speed rail and other next-generation infrastructure. Back home in Massachusetts, Seth works tirelessly to support local small businesses and veterans, advance civil rights, and grow the economy. He created a model intergovernmental task force that has spurred over $1 billion in federal economic development funding for the city of Lynn, and he forged a unique partnership between fishermen and scientists to ensure the long-term sustainability of fish stocks and the local fishing economy.

Most importantly, Seth is the proud father of two girls, Emmy and Caroline. His amazing wife Liz is a sports industry executive, and they live in Salem, Massachusetts.