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Corey Stewart is an American politician who is the At-Large Chairman of the Prince William Board of County Supervisors in the Commonwealth of Virginia, where he represents over 450,000 residents. Stewart has a reputation as a fighter for conservative issues, most notably for his 2007 crackdown on illegal immigration, which drew national media attention. In December 2015, Donald Trump announced that he had selected Stewart to chair his presidential campaign in Virginia. In 2016, Stewart announced his intention to run for Governor of Virginia.

Early life and education

Stewart was born in Duluth, Minnesota on August 1, 1968 as the fourth of five children of Earl and Beverly Stewart. The Stewart family traces its origins to Avernish, Scotland, from where it emigrated in 1851 to Lucknow, Ontario, Canada. Stewart's ancestor, Alexander Stewart, was a ship captain on the Great Lakes, and the family eventually moved to Duluth, where Stewart's father was a third-generation longshoreman.

Stewart earned an academic scholarship to attend Georgetown University, School of Foreign Service, where he earned his bachelors degree in 1991. He was the first member of his family to attend college. Stewart graduated magna cum laude from William Mitchell College of Law in Saint Paul, Minnesota in 1997.

Career

Stewart moved to Virginia in 1998 to begin his career as an international trade attorney with the Washington, DC office of Gardner Carton & Douglas. He then moved to the Washington office of Foley & Lardner until 2009, when he formed Stewart PLLC, an international trade and technology transfer firm.

Chairman of the Board of Supervisors

Elections

Stewart is now serving his fourth term as Chairman At-Large in Prince William, the second largest locality in the Commonwealth, with a population of 450,000 residents. Fifty-five percent of county residents are minorities. Stewart is elected county-wide, and he holds the distinction of being the only Republican who, since 2009, has been able to win countywide elections in the county, a politically pivotal locality in Northern Virginia which is considered a "must win" jurisdiction in state-wide elections. He was first elected Chairman in a special election held on November 7, 2006, replacing Sean Connaughton. He was subsequently reelected by large margins in 2007, 2011 and 2015.

Illegal Immigration

In 2007, Stewart led Prince William County in adopting an illegal immigration enforcement policy that generated a substantial amount of controversy and national media attention. The policy--which is considered to be the toughest crackdown on illegal immigration by any state or locality in the United States--requires county police officers to check the immigration status of every person arrested. Under the authority of the 287(g) program, Prince William County jail officers then coordinate with federal ICE officials to begin the deportation process. As of 2015, more than 7,500 illegal aliens who have committed crimes in the county have been handed over to ICE for deportation. Stewart credits the policy with the near 50 percent decline in the county's crime rate since 2007.

Second Amendment

Stewart led a successful effort to eliminate the concealed carry handgun fee in Prince William County. Although a small state-mandated portion of the fee remains, Prince William County became the first county in Virginia to eliminate the fee, and other counties in Virginia are now attempting to follow suit.

Budget Hawk

During his 10-year tenure as Chairman, Stewart has pushed through a series of spending reductions, which has kept average inflation-adjusted property tax bills flat. Taxes in the County are now, on average, 30 percent below those of other counties in the Northern Virginia region.

Campaign for Lieutenant Governor

Stewart was a candidate for the Republican nomination for Lieutenant Governor in the 2013 election. Although Stewart was unsuccessful in the seven-candidate Republican field, he received the Virginia Federation of Tea Party Patriots combined endorsement and raised his statewide profile, which ultimately led to other statewide endeavors.

Virginia State Chairman Donald Trump for President

In December 2015, Republican U.S. Presidential candidate Donald Trump announced that he had chosen Stewart to chair his campaign in Virginia. Stewart has been an outspoken proponent for Trump in national media.

In July 2016, Corey Stewart blamed Democrats, including Presumptive Democratic Presidential Nominee Hillary Clinton and Virginia Lieutenant Governor Ralph Northam for being the cause of the Dallas Shooting on Police that resulted in the death of 5 officers and wounding of more.

Campaign for Governor

At the Virginia State Republican Convention on April 30, 2016, Stewart announced his intention to run for Governor of Virginia. Although initially considered an underdog in the Virginia Governor's race, Donald Trump's victory in securing the Republican nomination has thrust Stewart, widely considered to be the most conservative of the potential candidates for Virginia Governor, into the forefront of Virginia GOP politics.

Personal life

Stewart married Maria Sjöström, a native of Nordmaling, Sweden, in 1994. The two met in 1992 in Tokyo, Japan, where Stewart was teaching English in a private English school. They have two children, Isaac and Luke, and are members of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church in Woodbridge, Virginia.

References

1. Shear, Michael (November 23, 2006). "For Republicans, There's Still Cause to Be Thankful". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 10, 2011.
2. About Corey
3. Kunkle, Frederick (October 8, 2006). "Candidates Differ on Approach To Growth". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 10, 2011.
4. http://www.insidenova.com/news/prince_william/prince-william-supervisors-slash-price-for-concealed-carry-permits/article_b61f6116-da91-11e5-a430-53aa7b5d8a77.html
5. http://www.northernvatimes.com/gainesville/article/splitting-the-pie-pw-county-schools-set-budgets-tax-rates
6. https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/why-donald-trump-chose-corey-stewart-to-chair-his-virginia-campaign/2015/12/16/b37f62d2-a335-11e5-b53d-972e2751f433_story.html
7. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/cruz-forces-still-question-donald-trumps-conservative-cred/
8. https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/trumps-virginia-chairman-blames-clinton-northam-for-dallas-massacre/2016/07/08/6b00a706-4514-11e6-88d0-6adee48be8bc_story.html/
9. http://wvtf.org/post/virginia-gubernatorial-hopefuls-gearing-2017#stream/0
10. http://thebullelephant.com/2017-governors-race-begun/

External links

• Official site
• Profile at Vote Smart

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