Yohannes Abraham

Abraham graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Fairfax County, Virginia.[1] He received a B.A. in political science from Yale College in 2007 and an MBA from Harvard Business School, where he graduated with high distinction as a Baker Scholar in 2019.[2] While in business school, Abraham was also selected as a residential fellow at the Harvard Institute of Politics.[3]

Abraham was formerly part of the Biden-Harris transition, where he oversaw many of the day-to-day operations.[2][4] During the Obama-Biden administration, Abraham served as both deputy assistant to the president and Senior Advisor to the National Economic Council. He served as Chief of Staff for the Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs. Abraham also worked with Vanguard Group’s global investment unit, as well as serving on the faculty of the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

Ambassador to Association of Southeast Asian Nations

External video
Announcement by Biden of Abraham's nomination, May 13, 2022, C-SPAN

On May 13, 2022, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Abraham to be the representative to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.[2] Hearings on his nomination were held before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on July 13, 2022. The committee favorably reported his nomination to the Senate floor on August 3, 2022. Abraham was confirmed on August 4, 2022 via voice vote.[5] He presented his credentials to the Secretary-General of ASEAN Lim Jock Hoi on October 5, 2022.[6]

Abraham is a native of Springfield, Virginia.[2]