James William Stevens (born 27 March 1983) is the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

member of the

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for the

Division of Sturt Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics * Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military * Division (military), a formation typically consistin ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

. He was elected in the 2019 Australian federal election, replacing the retiring Liberal member, Christopher Pyne. Stevens previously served as the Chief of Staff to Steven Marshall, the

Premier of South Australia The premier of South Australia is the head of government in the state of South Australia, Australia. The Government of South Australia follows the Westminster system, with a Parliament of South Australia acting as the legislature. The premier is ...

, and prior to that as the General Manager of Michell Australia.

Early life and education

James Stevens was born on 27 March 1983 in

Rose Park, South Australia Rose Park is a suburb with a population of 1,374 in the South Australian capital city of Adelaide. It is located east of Adelaide's central business district. Rose Park is a leafy, tree-lined and wealthy inner suburb containing a number of his ...

. Stevens attended Canberra Grammar School before completing school at St Peters College, Adelaide. He gained a Bachelor of Commerce and Master of International Trade and Development at the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

Career before politics

Stevens worked for Michell Wool, including as Commercial Manager and General Manager.

Political life

From July 2004 to July 2006 Stevens served as President of the

South Australian Young Liberal Movement The Young Liberal Movement of Australia, commonly referred to as the Young Liberals, is the youth movement of the Liberal Party of Australia representing members aged 16 to 31. It is organised as a federation with each state and territory divisi ...

. In 2005 he ran for the position of Federal Young Liberal President but was defeated by

Alex Hawke Alexander George Hawke (born 9 July 1977) is an Australian politician who served as Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs from 2020 to 2022 in the Morrison Government. Hawke has served as Member of ...

. Stevens was elected Campaign Coordinator for the South Australian Liberal Party in August 2006, serving in the role for two years. Stevens had worked for Christopher Pyne, and became chief of staff to Steven Marshall in February 2013 upon Marshall being elected the new Leader of the Opposition in state government. He had previously been campaign manager for Marshall's successful entry into state politics in the 2010 election, defeating Labor incumbent

Vini Ciccarello Vincenzina "Vini" Ciccarello (born 1947) is a former Australian Labor Party MP for the electoral district of Norwood in South Australia. She was also the mayor of the City of Kensington and Norwood for seven years. Ciccarello first won the sea ...

in the seat of Norwood. Stevens also served as the president of the Liberal Party in the Dunstan State Electorate Council from 2012 to 2016 and Sturt Federal Electorate Council from 2016 to 2019. From 2013 to 2018, Stevens served as the chief of staff to the leader of the parliamentary Liberal Party of South Australia. Steven was appointed the chief of staff to the South Australian Premier Steven Marshall from 2018 to 2019. He oversaw the adoption by the party of data mining software in the lead-up to the 2018 South Australian state election. Stevens was elected to the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

for Sturt in South Australia in 2019, replacing Christopher Pyne, who announced in March 2019 that he would retire from politics. Stevens is a member of the Moderate faction of the Liberal Party. In 2022, Stevens fell asleep in his office and failed to turn up to vote on the Religious Discrimination Bill. He denied claims that he had soiled himself as something that "patently did not happen". At the 2022 Federal Election, Stevens suffered a swing of 7.4% against him. He managed to retain the seat by a slim margin of 0.5%.

Recognition

In June 2013, '' The Advertiser'' newspaper listed Stevens as one of the 50 Most Influential South Australians.

Personal life

Stevens is dating Alex May, the current State Director of the Liberal Party in South Australia and former Deputy Chief of Staff to Premier Steven Marshall.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stevens, James Living people 1983 births University of Adelaide alumni People educated at Canberra Grammar School People educated at St Peter's College, Adelaide Liberal Party of Australia politicians Members of the Australian House of Representatives Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Sturt University of South Australia alumni 21st-century Australian politicians