Stivers was born and grew up in Ripley, Ohio, the son of Carol Sue (née Pulliam) and Ernst Bambach Stivers.[2] Steve is a recipient of the Eagle Scout Award.[3]
Stivers spent seven years at Bank One, three years at the Ohio Company, two years as finance director for the Franklin County Republican Party and five years as a staff member in the Ohio Senate.[6] Stivers worked as a Series 7 licensed securities trader with the Ohio Company.[6]
In December 2002, Republican Priscilla Mead resigned after serving in the Ohio Senate for only a year.[7] Stivers was recommended by a Senate screening committee and was appointed by election of the Senate Republicans on January 4, 2003.
He won re-election in 2004 to a full senate term with 58% of the vote.[8]
Tenure
Stivers served in the Ohio Senate from January 9, 2003, until December 2008.
Committee assignments
Stivers was the Chairman of the Insurance, Commerce and Labor Committee; Vice-Chair of the Finance and Financial Institutions Committee; and served on the Ways and Means Committee, the Judiciary Committee on Civil Justice, the Judiciary Committee for Criminal Justice, and the Controlling Board.[9]
In November 2007, Stivers announced he would run for election to Congress in Ohio's 15th District, a seat held by retiring Republican member Deborah Pryce. He won the Republican nomination and ran against Democratic FranklinCounty CommissionerMary Jo Kilroy, who had nearly unseated Pryce in 2006, Libertarian Mark Noble and Independent Don Elijah Eckhart. Stivers lost by 2,311 votes, conceding on December 7, 2008, after a long vote recount.[10]
Stivers won the Republican primary with 82% of the vote.[11][12] He again faced Democratic incumbent Mary Jo Kilroy along with Constitution Party nominee David Ryon and Libertarian nominee William J. Kammerer. On November 2, 2010, Kilroy conceded to Stivers, who won by a 54% to 42% margin.[10]
Redistricting after the 2010 census made the 15th much friendlier to Stivers. During his first term, he represented a fairly compact district covering all of Union and Madison counties, as well as most of downtown and western Columbus. The new map, however, pushed the 15th into more rural and exurban territory south and west of the capital.[citation needed]
Stivers ran again in 2012 against Democratic nominee Pat Lang.[13] He was endorsed by the NRA, National Right to Life, Ohio State Medical Association and United States Chamber of Commerce. Stivers was re-elected by 76,397 votes.[14]
Stivers has voted against raising the debt limit when there was no offset or systemic reform and supports prioritizing spending in the event that the debt limit is reached.[19][20] Stiver voted in favor of a Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.[21] Stivers voted to offset the costs of disaster relief spending through discretionary budget cuts.[20]
In 2019, Stivers voted against legislation to halt U.S. military assistance to the Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen.[21] He voted in favor of 2017 legislation to impose additional sanctions against Russia, Iran, and North Korea, which passed on a 419–3 vote.[21]
Immigration and travel
Stivers opposed President Donald Trump's issuance of Executive Order 13769, which imposed a temporary ban on entry to the U.S. to citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries, in 2017. Stivers stated: "I believe the executive order risks violating our nation's values and fails to differentiate mainstream Islamic partners from radical Islamic terrorists — setting back our fight against radical Islam. I urge the Administration to quickly replace this temporary order with permanent improvements in the visa vetting process."[23]
In 2019, Stivers voted against overriding Trump's veto of a bill to overturn Trump's declaration of an emergency to direct funding for the construction of a U.S.-Mexico border wall.[21]
Stivers beat Representative Roger Williams to be elected to chair the National Republican Congressional Committee in November 2016. As the leader of the NRCC, which is charged with helping elect Republican House candidates, Stivers said his goal was to "defy history" by protecting his party's House majority in the 2018 elections.[25] In June 2018, Stivers did not denounce the use of hacked materials in election campaigns, saying that as chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee he wouldn't "run down one of my candidates for using something that's in the public domain."[26] In a later interview in September 2018, Stivers made it clear he did not condone the use of hacked material, telling the press, "We are not seeking stolen or hacked material, we do not want to be stolen or hacked material, we have no intention of using stolen or hacked material."[27]
In the aftermath of the 2018 election, in which Republicans lost their House majority, Stivers announced that he would not run for re-election as NRCC chair.[28]
Candidate conduct
In response to congressional candidate Greg Gianforte being charged with assault on the eve of Montana'sspecial election,[29] Stivers characterized the assault as "out of character." He said, "we all make mistakes" and "need to let the facts surrounding this incident unfold."[30] The assault was witnessed by four Fox News reporters and the victim's account corroborated by their audio recording.[31]
In July 2018, Stivers and the NRCC withdrew support from New Jersey candidate Seth Grossman following reports he shared a post from a white supremacist.[32]
Additionally, days before the midterm elections, Stivers sent a tweet condemning white nationalist comments and actions from Congressman Steve King, saying "We must stand up against white supremacy and hate in all forms can and I strongly condemn this behavior."[33]