Eugene Vindman

Yevgeny Semyon "Eugene" Vindman (Ukrainian: Євген Семенович Віндман; born June 6, 1975) is a retired United States Army lieutenant colonel and American politician. He was a deputy legal advisor for the United States National Security Council (NSC) until he was reassigned on February 7, 2020.

Vindman came to national attention in October 2019 when his twin brother, Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman, testified before the United States Congress regarding the Trump–Ukraine scandal. Eugene received the report of President Trump's phone call from Alex and reported the call to senior White House lawyers. Alex's testimony provided evidence that resulted in a charge of abuse of power in the impeachment of Donald Trump.

In June 2024, Vindman won the Democratic primary for VA's 7th congressional district in the House of Representatives. He will face Republican Derrick Anderson in the general election.

Early life and education
Yevgeny Semyon Vindman (né Yevgeny Semyonovich Vindman) and his identical twin brother Alexander were born in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet Union, to a Jewish family. After the death of their mother, the three-year-old twins and their older brother Leonid were brought to New York in December 1979 by their father, Semyon (Simon). They grew up in Brooklyn's Brighton Beach neighborhood. The twins appear briefly with their maternal grandmother in the 1985 Ken Burns documentary The Statue of Liberty. Vindman speaks fluent Russian.

In 1997, Vindman graduated from the State University of New York at Binghamton in Binghamton, New York, with a bachelor of arts degree in history, and later a juris doctor from the University of Georgia.

Trump phone call to Zelensky
On July 25, 2019, Alex Vindman listened to a phone call between Presidents Trump and Zelensky and was concerned by the contents, saying that he "did not think it was proper to demand that a foreign government investigate a U.S. citizen," and "was worried about the implications for the U.S. Government's support of Ukraine." Alex believed that the call would "undermine U.S. national security." Alex immediately reported the call to Y. Vindman, who was the lead ethics attorney and a deputy legal advisor. Vindman recognized the serious legal ramification of the call, including violations of law, and the legal/political jeopardy President Trump faced. Vindman advised that they both further report the call through channels to the NSC's lead counsel, John Eisenberg. Vindman had two more conversations with Mr. Eisenberg about the July 25, 2019, phone call. The first follow-up conversation occurred on August 1, 2019. Vindman sought to clarify with Mr. Eisenberg their role and obligations as attorneys, and whether as attorneys they were duty-bound to represent the Office of the President of the United States or the individual serving as President. Vindman had a second conversation with Mr. Eisenberg on August 5, 2019, when he conveyed his concern that President Trump's request that President Zelensky investigate President Trump's political rival may have violated the Federal Bribery Statute, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and federal election laws. Once the call became public, both brothers received threats and denunciation, and reached out to the Army regarding their family's safety.

Eugene helped his brother throughout the impeachment, including by drafting the portion of the opening statement where A. Vindman assured their father that he had made the right decision in emigrating from the Soviet Union to the United States. Alex stated, "In Russia, my act of ... offering public testimony involving the President would surely cost me my life. I am grateful for my father's brave act of hope 40 years ago and for the privilege of being an American citizen and public servant, where I can live free of fear for mine [sic] and my family's safety. Dad, my sitting here today, in the U.S. Capitol talking to our elected officials is proof that you made the right decision forty years ago to leave the Soviet Union and come here to United States of America in search of a better life for our family. Do not worry, I will be fine for telling the truth."

On February 10, 2020, then-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) sent a letter in an apparent response to the firing of the two brothers that requested federal Inspectors General investigate possible retaliation against "anyone who has made, or in the future makes, protected disclosures of presidential misconduct." On February 13, Trump's former chief of staff, retired Marine General John Kelly, defended Vindman's actions and testimony. "He did exactly what we teach them to do from cradle to grave. He went and told his boss what he just heard," Kelly said.

During a panel discussion in February 2020, at the Atlantic Council, Trump's National Security Advisor, Robert C. O'Brien said it was his decision to remove both Vindman brothers from the NSC staff and denied that the move was ordered by Trump in retaliation for Vindman's testimony. O'Brien also disputed the removal from the NSC staff was a "firing" since both brothers remained active-duty Army officers. O'Brien said that their transfer was part of a larger NSA staff reduction. His remarks contradicted Trump, who tweeted that he had ousted Vindman for insubordination and for doing "a lot of bad things."

Vindman held the rank of colonel on active duty, but retired as a lieutenant colonel because he had not served the minimum requirement of three years' time in grade to retain the rank in retirement. In 2022, his supporters called on President Biden to allow Yevgeny to retire as a colonel. Vindman himself emphasized that retiring at the rank of colonel would not affect his retirement compensation and would be merely “honorific.” The Army declined to submit Vindman's request to President Joe Biden, telling the media that time-in-grade waivers were extremely rare, with "only three such waivers for Army officers since 1997." Vindman's lawyer, Mark Zaid, who is also a founder of the nonprofit Whistleblower Aid offering legal services to others like Yevgeny, emphasized that the White House's failure to address Vindman's request might deter officials from speaking out about potential government wrongdoing in the future.

Post-retirement career
Since 2022, Vindman has held the position of Director of Military Analysis and Prosecution Support for the Atrocity Crimes Advisory (ACA) group. The ACA was formed by the European Union, the United States, and the United Kingdom as an operational hub coordinating assistance to the Office of the Prosecutor of Ukraine. This collaboration aims to investigate and prosecute those responsible for war crimes committed on Ukrainian soil.

In March 2023, Eugene Vindman, together with his twin brother Alexander Vindman, initiated the Trident Support project. Its primary goal is to set up a weapon maintenance and training facility within Ukraine. Within Trident Support, the Vindman brothers aim to enlist 100-200 adept Western contractors. These professionals will collaborate with Ukrainian forces close to the front lines, offering training on mending battle-affected equipment provided by Western countries.

2024 U.S. House of Representatives campaign
In November 2023, Vindman announced that he would run for the United States House of Representatives in Virginia's 7th District, where incumbent Democrat Abigail Spanberger is not seeking reelection.

Vindman received endorsements from Adam Schiff, former Under Secretary of the Army Patrick Murphy, and the The Washington Post editorial board. Despite being a newcomer to politics, Vindman was able to fundraise based on his national profile and quickly became a frontrunner in the Democratic primary. He raised $5 million and had $876,000 on hand as of May 29, 2024, in addition to a combined $1.3 million in independent expenditures from cryptocurrency advocacy group Protect Progress PAC and VoteVets. However, Vindman's national profile and disconnect from local politics has been regularly criticized by local Democratic activists and elected officials.

In April, Vindman was photographed alongside supporters in a now-deleted post to Twitter holding a flag used during the Virginia's Confederate period. Vindman apologized and called it a mistake. The National Republican Congressional Committee released a statement ridiculing Vindman and President Pro Tem of the Virginia Senate Louise Lucas stated "When I saw the news that a Democratic candidate for Congress was campaigning with the confederate era Virginia flag I was angry and stunned, How could someone who wants to represent us be so ignorant of our history?"

On June 18, 2024, Vindman won the Democratic primary. He is expected to face Republican Derrick Anderson in the general election.

Personal life
Vindman is married to Cindy Vindman, née Groff. The couple has two children.