When the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan descended into chaos in August 2021, Jessica Hayes found herself on the front lines of a humanitarian crisis—not in Kabul, but in a congressional district office in Georgia. Hayes, now a senior adviser to Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.), described that period as a “holy calling,” a time when she and her colleagues worked around the clock to help desperate families escape the Taliban takeover.
At the time, Hayes was working for then-Rep. Jody Hice (R-Ga.) in the 10th District. The office was inundated with calls from constituents and, soon, from people across the country and around the world, all pleading for help to get their loved ones out of Afghanistan. The caseload quickly swelled beyond the district, turning the small team into an impromptu evacuation task force.
“We’re there to really work on behalf of so many constituents who are in need,” Hayes said. “They don’t get a lot of praise, they don’t get a lot of pay, they just kind of keep their head down and their hand to the grindstone, and they do this day in and day out.”
Hayes’s path to that role was itself a twist of fate. A year earlier, Hice had encouraged her to run for Congress, a move she ultimately declined after weighing the toll it would take on her family. During the frantic evacuation effort, she realized that had she run—and won—she wouldn’t have been in the trenches helping those in need. “It was a miracle I was even there,” she said.
The work paid off. According to a letter from the Nazarene Fund, a nonprofit that assisted in the evacuations, Hice and his staff helped 12,500 people leave Afghanistan, including U.S. citizens, permanent residents, Afghan allies, persecuted Christians, at-risk women, and judges and lawyers.
Hice, who now serves as chairman of the Georgia Republican Party, praised Hayes’s leadership style. “She’s just one of those folks that has a unique capacity to accomplish that,” he said, describing her as someone who can offer encouragement with an arm over your shoulder while also delivering a motivational kick in the pants. “She challenges people and pushes for excellence,” he added.
Hayes’s experience underscores the often-overlooked role of district staff, who operate far from the Capitol but serve as the primary link between constituents and their government. While policy staff in Washington craft legislation, district aides handle casework—everything from veterans’ benefits to passport issues—and, in extraordinary moments, life-or-death emergencies.
Now working in the 9th District for Clyde, Hayes continues to apply the lessons learned during the evacuation. “It was a holy calling,” she said, “and it’s a calling that continues every day in this work.”
Her story also highlights the broader challenges facing congressional offices, which must balance constituent services with the political turmoil of redistricting and election cycles. As Missouri's redistricting turmoil leaves House races in limbo and courts intervene in map disputes, the importance of stable, dedicated district staff remains a constant.
For Hayes, the evacuation was a defining moment, but the daily grind of constituent service is what truly matters. “We don’t get a lot of recognition,” she said, “but we know why we’re here.”
