The Republican incumbent has made gun rights, deportations, Trump loyalty his hallmarks.
By Brice Claypoole
Original Air Date: May 15, 2026
Host: Congressional District 17 covers most of Sarasota, all of Charlotte and parts of Lee County. Greg Steube was first elected in 2018 to represent the district in the U.S. House of Representatives, and he sailed through re-election twice easily. As a resident of east Sarasota County, last week’s redistricting actually moved him out of the district he represents. Even so, he is not dropping out. Brice Claypoole brings you the details on Steube’s reelection bid.
Brice Claypoole: Congressman Greg Steube is a fifth-generation Floridian born in Bradenton. His mother was an elementary school teacher; his father, Brad Steube, a police officer who went on to serve 10 years as Manatee County Sheriff.
Greg Steube earned a Bachelor’s in Animal Sciences and a law degree from the University of Florida. After the September 11 terrorist attack in 2001, Steube joined the army. He served in Iraq as an Airborne Infantry Officer and a JAG Corps captain.
Congressman Greg Steube
After returning home, Steube won a state house seat in 2010 and joined the Florida senate in 2016. He became well-known as Sarasota’s pro-gun provocateur. He sparked standoffs with local law enforcement and filed bills to allow people to bring guns into Florida colleges and airport passenger terminals. Here’s an exchange he had with a Fox News host over whether kids should be able to bring guns to school in the wake of a mass shooting.
Fox host: Guns and kids actually used to be something that was very commonplace in the United States. Even in New York, we had about 80 school districts in which kids would bring guns to school for gun shows.
Congressman Greg Steube
Greg Steube: Well, and that’s dying in this country because school districts obviously don’t even want any type of firearms in their schools, but you’re absolutely right. Teach children and educate them on how to shoot. They’re trying to restrict law-abiding citizens’ rights and not addressing the problem. Let’s do school safety. Let’s ensure that our children are protected. Let’s ensure that somebody that is trained and armed is in these schools to be able to protect against our children. Israel does it. They have armed people and hardened schools in all of their schools.
BC: In 2018, Steube was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. He quickly gained a reputation as a conservative culture warrior. He also joined the cadre of far-right representatives who pushed to overturn the 2020 election. That helped make him a staple of Fox News, where he lambasts Democrats and praises President Trump. He’s proven popular at home as well, consistently winning reelection by large margins. Though two Democrats are vying for the chance to challenge him this year, he has yet to acknowledge them or launch an extensive campaign.
Greg Steube with NOAA hurricane hunters
Steube has also notched impressive fundraising numbers. His campaign committee collected over $950,000 by the end of March, according to disclosures to the Federal Election Commission. Much of his recent contributions have come from energy companies. That includes money from Duke Energy and NextEra Energy, which owns Florida Power & Light. Other influential donors to his campaign include political action committees affiliated with American Crystal Sugar Company and Koch Industries, which has been a key supporter throughout his time in politics.
Steube did not respond to multiple requests for an interview. However, a review of his voting history and media appearances reveals a largely hard-right profile, invariably aligned with Trump. Steube emphasizes tough-on-crime policies, fighting welfare fraud, and staunch opposition to immigration. Earlier this year, he introduced the so-called EXILE Act, which would end the H1-B visa program for foreign workers. He’s also pushing legislation to dramatically increase the pay for federal immigration enforcement officers. Here he is criticizing Democrats’ response to Trump’s immigration crackdown:
Congressman Greg Steube
GS: Where were all these tears of the illegal immigrants murdering American citizens? All of the hundreds of thousands of Americans who have died from fentanyl overdoses—the known terrorists that have come into our country, the rapists, the murderers—where are the tears for this? This is all theater.
BC: Steube embraces isolationism, advocating for America to withdraw from both NATO and the United Nations. He opposes military aid for Ukraine—which has prompted strong opposition from Ukrainian Americans who live in South Sarasota County. At the same time, he strongly backs Trump’s war in Iran, drawing on his experiences in Iraq to push back against accusations that the current war will run a similar course.
Steube is also a vocal supporter of the SAVE Act, a controversial voter ID bill that remains Trump’s top priority. To pass the SAVE Act, which is opposed by all senate Democrats, Steube has frequently called for Republicans to “nuke the filibuster”—eliminating the 60-vote threshold needed to pass legislation in the senate.
Steube’s coastal district has faced increasing pressure from climate change. However, according to WGCU News, Steube remains skeptical of human-caused climate change. He received one of the lowest scores of any congressman from the League of Conservation Voters. According to the group, the only pro-environment bills that Steube has voted for were a shark finning ban and a ban on oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, both in 2019. He has pushed to have the Myakka River recognized federally as a Wild and Scenic River.
Greg Steube shakes hands with a veteran
One challenge Steube may need to overcome is the perception that he is out-of-touch with his constituents. In his 2016 bid for state senate, Steube knocked on thousands of doors across the region. This year, residents have hardly caught a glimpse of him. Allen Spence, a Democrat hoping to challenge Steube in November, caused a stir on social media when he went to Steube’s office in Venice. What he found was a storage room, and he claims that he was told Steube hasn’t been there since 2024.
So far, Steube hasn’t responded to the accusations. For now, the congressman appears confident that his financial advantage and his culture-war credentials will earn him another term representing much of the Suncoast.
For WSLR News, this is Brice Claypoole.
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