Greg Steube

Steube was born in Bradenton to Brad Steube, who served as Sheriff of Manatee County. He attended the University of Florida, receiving a degree in Animal Science in 2000, and then his Juris Doctor from the Fredric G. Levin College of Law in 2003. Also while at UF, Steube was a brother of Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity. Following graduation, Steube joined the United States Army and attended The JAG School at the University of Virginia and entered U.S. Army JAG Corps. He served from 2004 to 2008 and deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

When State Representative Ron Reagan was unable to seek re-election in 2010 due to term limits, Steube ran to succeed him in the 67th District, which was based in southern Hillsborough County, eastern Manatee County, and northern Sarasota County, stretching from Apollo Beach to Fruitville. He received an endorsement from United States Congressman Vern Buchanan, who declared that Steube was "extremely knowledgeable of the district and the district's issues."[2] In the Republican primary, he faced Jeremiah J. Guccione and Robert McKann, whom he was able to easily defeat, receiving 53% of the vote to Guccione's 28% and McCann's 19%. He advanced to the general election, where he faced Democratic nominee Z. J. Hafeez and independent candidate John M. Studebaker. Both candidates opposed offshore oil drilling off the coast of the state, supported solar energy, and favored medical tort law reform "that they [felt would] increase access to health care for Floridians."[3] In the end, Steube defeated both his opponents in a landslide, winning 68% of the vote to Hafeez's 27% and Studebaker's 5%.

Following the reconfiguration of state legislative districts in 2012, Steube's district was renumbered as the 73rd District. The district was pushed further into Sarasota County while losing its share of Hillsborough County. He won the renomination of his party unopposed, and moved on to the general election, facing only Bob McCann, who had previously run against Steube in the Republican primary in 2010, but was instead running as an independent candidate. Steube and McCann disagreed over whether the state should expand Medicaid under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, with Steube opposed and McCann in favor, and over whether the state should fund charter schools, with Steube in favor and McCann opposed.[4] Steube earned the endorsement of the Bradenton Herald, which praised him for his "strong first term and his qualifications," specifically calling him out for working to put two constitutional amendments on the ballot that provide tax exemptions to the spouses of deceased military veterans and property tax relief to low-income seniors.[5] Ultimately, Steube once again defeated McCann, overwhelming him with 74% of the vote and winning his second term in the legislature. In 2014, Steube was re-elected to his third term in the legislature without opposition.

In 2016, Steube ran for the Florida Senate seat vacated by Nancy Detert, who was term limited. He defeated four other candidates in the Republican primary, receiving 31% of the vote, and won the general election against Democrat Frank Alcock, 59 to 41%.[6][7]

Six weeks prior to the 2018 election, Steube's Democratic opponent, 54 year old April Freeman, was found dead. As of January 2019, the cause of death is unknown.[17] A Democratic replacement, Allen Ellison, was appointed. However, ballots were already printed. Rather than reprint, Ellison's name was left off of the ballot.[18]

• Congressman Greg Steube official U.S. House website
• Greg Steube for Congress
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Profile at Vote Smart
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Legislation sponsored at the Library of Congress
• Florida House of Representatives - Greg Steube