Steve Smith is an American politician and a former

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

member of the

Arizona Senate The Arizona State Senate is part of the Arizona Legislature, the state legislature of the US state of Arizona. The Senate consists of 30 members each representing an average of 219,859 constituents (2009 figures). Members serve two-year terms w ...

representing District 11 since 2015 to 2019. He previously represented the 11th district in the

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

from 2013 to 2015, and District 23 seat in the Senate from 2011 to 2013.

Early life and education

Smith was born in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

. He earned his BA in

marketing Marketing is the process of exploring, creating, and delivering value to meet the needs of a target market in terms of goods and services; potentially including selection of a target audience; selection of certain attributes or themes to emph ...

from

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the fi ...

. He moved to Arizona in 2001.

Elections

In 2010, Smith challenged incumbent Democratic State Senator

Rebecca Rios Rebecca, ; Syriac: , ) from the Hebrew (lit., 'connection'), from Semitic root , 'to tie, couple or join', 'to secure', or 'to snare') () appears in the Hebrew Bible as the wife of Isaac and the mother of Jacob and Esau. According to biblical ...

for the District 23 seat. Smith won the August 24, 2010, Republican primary with 11,719 votes (74.4%); and defeated Rios in the November 2, 2010, general election with 34,568 votes. In 2012, incumbent Republican State Senator

Michele Reagan Michele Reagan (born October 13, 1969) is an American Republican politician who served as the 20th Arizona Secretary of State, from 2015 to 2019. She is currently a Justice of the Peace for the Maricopa County McDowell Mountain Precinct. Early ...

was redistricted from District 8 and State Representatives Eric Meyer and

Kate Brophy McGee Kate Brophy McGee (born in Arizona) is an American politician and was a Republican member of the Arizona Senate representing District 28 from 2017 to 2021. Brophy McGee previously served in the Arizona House of Representatives. Education Brophy ...

were redistricted to District 28. Smith declared his candidacy for House District 11. In the August 28, 2012, Republican primary, he placed first with 16,201 votes, and won the three-way November 6, 2012, general election with 44,928 votes against Democratic nominee Dave Joseph. In 2014, Smith defeated Democrat Jo Holton in the November 4 general election.http://apps.azsos.gov/election/2014/General/Canvass2014GE.pdf In 2016, Smith was unopposed in the Republican primary. He defeated Democratic nominee Ralph Atchue in the general election. The

Goldwater Institute The Goldwater Institute is a conservative and libertarian public policy think tank located in Phoenix whose stated mission is "to defend and strengthen the freedom guaranteed to all Americans in the constitutions of the United States and all fift ...

gave him a 69% evaluation in 2013. The

American Conservative Union The American Conservative Union (ACU) is an American political organization that advocates for conservative policies, ranks politicians based on their level of conservatism, and organizes the Conservative Political Action Conference. Founded on ...

gave him a 95% evaluation in 2017.

Personal life

Smith is married to his wife Jamie, and they have five children. Smith is a

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

Electoral history

References

External links

Official page
at the

Arizona State Legislature The Arizona State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Arizona. It is a bicameral legislature that consists of a lower house, the House of Representatives, and an upper house, the Senate. Composed of 90 legislators, the s ...

Historic page
from his

term
Campaign site
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Steve Place of birth missing (living people) Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Republican Party Arizona state senators Republican Party members of the Arizona House of Representatives Michigan State University alumni People from Pinal County, Arizona 21st-century American politicians