William R. Gustoff (born 1968) is an American politician and attorney who has represented the 40th district in the

Iowa House of Representatives The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed ...

since January 2023, which consists of parts of northeast

Des Moines Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

in Polk County, including most of Altoona and Saylorville. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Early life

Gustoff was born in 1968 in

Independence, Iowa Independence is a city in, and the county seat of, Buchanan County, Iowa, Buchanan County, Iowa, United States. The population was 6,064 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History Independence was founded on June 15, 1847 near t ...

, and was raised in

Center Point, Iowa Center Point is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States. The population was 2,579 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Cedar Rapids Metropolitan Statistical Area. History The first house was built in Center Point in 1854. Geography Acco ...

. He was one of three children. His father was a municipal employee and his mother was a school teacher. He attended the

University of Northern Iowa The University of Northern Iowa (UNI) is a public university in Cedar Falls, Iowa, United States. UNI offers more than 90 majors across five colleges. The fall 2024 total enrollment was 9,283 students. The university was initially founded in 1 ...

from 1986 to 1987, the

Elliott School of International Affairs The Elliott School of International Affairs (known as the Elliott School or ESIA) is the professional school of international relations, foreign policy, and international development of the George Washington University, in Washington, D.C. It is ...

from 1987 to 1990, received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in political science from the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

in 1993, and received a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

with Distinction from the

University of Iowa College of Law The University of Iowa College of Law is the law school of the University of Iowa, located in Iowa City, Iowa. It was founded in 1865. History The law school was founded in 1865 by George Grover Wright and Chester C. Cole as an independent la ...

in 1995.

Political career

Following decennial redistricting in 2021, Gustoff announced his candidacy for the open 40th district seat in the Iowa House of Representatives in January 2022. He ran unopposed in the Republican primary on June 7, 2022, winning with over 99 percent of the vote, and won the general election on November 8 with over 49 percent of the vote, defeating Democrat Mackenzie Bills by just over three points. He assumed office on January 9, 2023. Gustoff endorsed

Ron DeSantis Ronald Dion DeSantis (; born September 14, 1978) is an American politician, attorney, and former United States Navy, naval officer serving as the 46th List of governors of Florida, governor of Florida since 2019. A member of the Republican Pa ...

for president in 2023. In 2024, Gustoff filed to run for reelection. He won the Republican primaries unopposed on June 4, 2024, and will face Democrat Heather Sievers in the general election on November 5, 2024. Gustoff is a member of the Education, Public Safety, and Judiciary committees, the lattermost of which he is the vice chair. Gustoff has said that his priorities include small business, lowering taxes and narrowing the influence of government. He supports the

Second Amendment The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of Un ...

and

school choice School choice is a term for education options that allow students and families to select alternatives to traditional public schools. School choice options include scholarship tax credit programs, open enrollment laws (which allow students to att ...

and opposes

abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...

Personal life

Gustoff has a wife, Sara, and four children. He resides with his family in Des Moines. He is a practicing attorney and is a founding partner of the Hagenow Gustoff & Karas law firm. He is a member of the

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

and

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

state bar associations, the Christian Legal Society, and

Habitat for Humanity Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI), generally referred to as Habitat for Humanity or Habitat, is a U.S. non-governmental, and tax-exempt 501(C)(3) Christian nonprofit organization which seeks to build affordable housing. The international ...

of Iowa, among several other organizations, and has served on the Emmaus Bible College Board of Trustees, as well as treasurer of the

Republican Party of Iowa The Republican Party of Iowa (RPI) is the affiliate of the Republican Party (United States), United States Republican Party in Iowa. The State Central Committee is chaired by Jeff Kaufmann. The RPI operates the Republican side of the Iowa caucu ...

Electoral history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gustoff, Bill Date of birth missing (living people) Living people 1968 births Republican Party members of the Iowa House of Representatives 21st-century members of the Iowa General Assembly Iowa lawyers 21st-century American lawyers University of Iowa alumni University of Northern Iowa alumni Elliott School of International Affairs alumni People from Independence, Iowa People from Center Point, Iowa