Bill DeSteph Jr.
2024 - Present
2028
0
Bill DeSteph Jr. (Republican Party) is a member of the Virginia State Senate, representing District 20. He assumed office on January 10, 2024. His current term ends on January 12, 2028.
DeSteph (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the Virginia State Senate to represent District 20. He won in the general election on November 7, 2023.
Biography
DeSteph received his B.S. from the University of Maryland. He was a senior vice president and co-owner of AMTI from 1999 to 2006. DeSteph was elected to the Virginia Beach City Council in 2006. He served in the United States Navy during Operation Desert Storm.
Committee assignments
2023-2024
DeSteph was assigned to the following committees:
- Local Government Committee
- Rehabilitation and Social Services Committee
- Senate Transportation Committee
2020-2021
DeSteph was assigned to the following committees:
- Local Government Committee
- Rehabilitation and Social Services Committee
- Senate Transportation Committee
2019-2020
DeSteph was assigned to the following committees:
- Senate Privileges and Elections Committee
- General Laws and Technology Committee
- Rehabilitation and Social Services Committee
- Local Government Committee
- Senate Transportation Committee
2016 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2016 legislative session, DeSteph served on the following committees:
| Virginia committee assignments, 2016 |
|---|
| • General Laws and Technology |
| • Local Government |
| • Privileges and Elections |
| • Rehabilitation and Social Services |
| • Transportation |
2015 legislative session
In the 2015 legislative session, DeSteph served on the following committees:
| Virginia committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Counties, Cities and Towns |
| • Finance |
| • Science and Technology |
2014 legislative session
In the 2014 legislative session, DeSteph served on the following committees:
| Virginia committee assignments, 2014 |
|---|
| • Counties, Cities and Towns |
| • Finance |
| • Science and Technology |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2023
See also: Virginia State Senate elections, 2023
General election
General election for Virginia State Senate District 20
Incumbent Bill DeSteph Jr. defeated Victoria Luevanos in the general election for Virginia State Senate District 20 on November 7, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Bill DeSteph Jr. (R) | 56.9 | 36,545 |
 | Victoria Luevanos (D) | 42.9 | 27,560 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.2 | 126 | ||
| Total votes: 64,231 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Victoria Luevanos advanced from the Democratic primary for Virginia State Senate District 20.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent Bill DeSteph Jr. advanced from the Republican primary for Virginia State Senate District 20.
Endorsements
2019
See also: Virginia State Senate elections, 2019
General election
General election for Virginia State Senate District 8
Incumbent Bill DeSteph Jr. defeated Missy Cotter Smasal in the general election for Virginia State Senate District 8 on November 5, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Bill DeSteph Jr. (R) | 52.1 | 28,637 |
 | Missy Cotter Smasal (D) | 47.7 | 26,242 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 81 | ||
| Total votes: 54,960 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Endorsements
To see a list of endorsements for Bill DeSteph Jr, click here
2015
- See also: Virginia State Senate elections, 2015
Elections for the Virginia State Senate took place in 2015. A primary election was held on June 9, 2015. The general election took place on November 3, 2015. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 26, 2015.[1] Dave Belote was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Bill DeSteph defeated Craig Hudgins in the Republican primary. DeSteph defeated Belote in the general election.[2]
| Virginia State Senate, District 8 General Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Bill DeSteph |
59% | 15,905 | |
| Democratic | Dave Belote | 41% | 11,075 | |
| Total Votes | 26,980 | |||
| Virginia State Senate, District 8 Republican Primary, 2015 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|
Bill DeSteph |
71.1% | 2,280 |
| Craig Hudgins | 28.9% | 928 |
| Total Votes | 3,208 | |
2013
DeSteph won the 2013 election for Virginia House of Delegates District 82. DeSteph ran unopposed in the June 11 Republican primary. He defeated Bill Fleming (D) in the general election on November 5, 2013.[3]
| Virginia House of Delegates, District 82 General Election, 2013 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Bill R. DeSteph, Jr |
59.8% | 13,995 | |
| Democratic | Bill Fleming | 40% | 9,372 | |
| Other | Write-in | 0.2% | 43 | |
| Total Votes | 23,410 | |||
Race snapshot
Incumbent Bob Purkey (R) did not seek re-election in 2013. In this Republican-leaning open seat in Virginia Beach, Fleming, a physicist and a small business investor, was selected by Democracy for America to run. Both candidates started the campaign as new to state legislative races, but Republican candidate Bill R. DeSteph, Jr was elected to the Virginia Beach City Council in 2006. This seat was on the radar of having a chance to change party hands but stayed in Republican control following the 2013 election.[4][5][6]
Campaign themes
2023
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Bill DeSteph Jr. did not complete Ballotpedia's 2023 Candidate Connection survey.
2019
Video for Ballotpedia
| Video submitted to Ballotpedia Released September 12, 2019 |
Bill DeSteph Jr. completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2019. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by DeSteph's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
| Collapse all
Senator DeSteph believes in smaller, smarter government, and will work tirelessly on behalf of the citizens of Virginia Beach to promote public safety, free-market capitalism, energy independence, and private-sector job creation throughout the commonwealth and our great nation. He was elected to the Senate of Virginia in November 2015 to represent the 8th District. Senator DeSteph has previously served in the Virginia House of Delegates (2014-2016) and on Virginia Beach City Council (2006-2014). A Desert Storm veteran, Senator DeSteph proudly served in the United States Navy, both as a chief petty officer and as a naval special-warfare intelligence officer. He later joined the defense technology firm AMTI as a senior vice president and co-owner, where he assisted in the growth and eventual sale of the company. DeSteph has given his time and resources to the city of Virginia Beach for years, coaching youth sports as well as volunteering for the Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters, Prevent Child Abuse Hampton Roads, the Noblemen, Hampton Roads Community Care and the Naval Special Warfare Foundation. He also serves on the Boy Scouts of America Tidewater Council Board of Directors, and is an active member of Law Enforcement United, participating in the annual 'Road to Hope' bicycle ride for many years.
A top priority is bringing down healthcare costs. This session I was the chief co-patron of several bills which became law: autism coverage is now available for individuals of all ages when it previously only covered ages 2-10; we enhanced the safety net for those facing a lapse in coverage, now if you have short-term insurance plans extending or renewing is guaranteed; small business owners can pool their buying power to provide quality health care for their employees at a lower rate; we made sure all health care payments go toward your yearly deductible. We expanded care, lowered costs, and increased access for more Virginians.
Another top priority is ensuring our children receive a quality education. I voted to increase teacher pay by 5% this year to keep and attract the best teachers in our public schools.
The most important priority of government is public safety. I'm a proud supporter of law enforcement, and I will continue to fight to ensure they have the resources necessary to keep us safe. We must fully enforce gun laws and add tougher penalties for those who possess or use guns illegally, while protecting the rights of law abiding citizens.
My goal is to continue making Virginia a place where families and businesses can thrive. That means ensuring you and your family have good paying jobs, that your businesses enjoy conditions where you can innovate and bolster the local economy, and that we bring down the rising costs of healthcare so you can keep more money in your pocket.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Virginia scorecards, email suggestions to [email protected].
2023
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
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In 2023, the Virginia State Legislature was in session from January 11 to February 25.
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2022
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show]. |
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In 2022, the Virginia State Legislature was in session from January 12 to March 12.
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2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, the Virginia State Legislature was in session from January 13 to February 8.
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2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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In 2020, the Virginia State Legislature was in session from January 8 to March 12. A special session was held from August 18 to November 9.
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2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Virginia General Assembly was in session from January 9 through February 24.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the Virginia General Assembly was in session from January 10 through March 10. Special sessions were held from April 11 to May 30 and from August 30 to October 30.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the Virginia General Assembly was in session from January 11 through February 25.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the Virginia General Assembly was in session from January 13 through March 11.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the Virginia General Assembly was in session from January 14 to February 28, 2015.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the Virginia General Assembly was in session from January 8 through March 10.
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See also
2023 Elections
External links
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Candidate Virginia State Senate District 20 |
Officeholder Virginia State Senate District 20 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Virginia State Board of Elections, "2015 November Election Calendar," accessed January 2, 2015
- ↑ Virginia Board of Elections, "2015 General election candidates," accessed August 21, 2015
- ↑ Virginia Board of Elections, “Official Results - 2013 General Election," accessed December 2, 2013
- ↑ VPAP, "House of Delegates District 75," accessed October 3, 2013
- ↑ Daily Kos, "A look at the 2013 Virginia House of Delegates Elections," April 11, 2013
- ↑ Democracy for America, "Bill Fleming for VA House of Delegates," accessed October 3, 2013
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Bill Stanley (R) |
Virginia State Senate District 20 2024-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
Virginia State Senate District 8 2016-2024 |
Succeeded by Mark Peake (R) |
| Preceded by - |
Virginia House of Delegates District 82 2014-2016 |
Succeeded by - |
