Victoria Spartz facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Victoria Spartz
Вікторія Спартц
Official portrait, 2021
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana's 5th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2021
Preceded by	Susan Brooks
Member of the Indiana Senate from the 20th district
In office October 1, 2017 – November 17, 2020
Preceded by	Luke Kenley
Succeeded by	Scott Baldwin
Personal details
Born	Viktoriya Kulheyko (1978-10-06) October 6, 1978 (age 46) Nosovka, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union (now Nosivka, Ukraine)
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Jason Spartz ​ (m. 2000)​
Children	2
Education	Kyiv National Economic University (BS, MBA) Indiana University, Indianapolis (MAcc)
Website

Victoria Spartz (born October 6, 1978) is a politician and businesswoman from the United States. She was born in Ukraine. She is currently a U.S. representative for Indiana's 5th congressional district. Ms. Spartz is a member of the Republican Party. Before joining the U.S. House of Representatives, she served in the Indiana Senate.

Early Life and Education

Victoria Kulheyko was born in Nosivka, Ukraine. At that time, Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union. She lived with her grandparents until she was five. Then, they moved to Chernihiv. There, she attended a special school called a lyceum and graduated with top honors.

Spartz earned two degrees from Kyiv National Economic University. She received a bachelor of science degree and a master of business administration degree.

In 2000, when she was 22, Spartz moved to the United States. She became a U.S. citizen in 2006. She also earned a master of accountancy degree from Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis.

Before Becoming a Congress Member

From 2010 to 2021, Spartz was a certified public accountant (CPA). This means she was licensed to handle financial records for businesses and people. She also held a real estate broker license from 2003 to 2020.

Spartz was a founding member of the Hamilton County, Indiana Tea Party. This was a political group focused on reducing government spending. She also worked as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for the Indiana Attorney General's office. A CFO is a top manager who handles a company's money. She also taught at the Kelley School of Business in Indianapolis. Plus, she owned businesses related to real estate and farming.

In 2017, Spartz was chosen to join the Indiana Senate. She represented the 20th district after the previous senator resigned.

Serving in the U.S. House of Representatives

2020 Election for Congress

In June 2019, the current Republican representative, Susan Brooks, said she would not run again. Victoria Spartz then announced she would run for Indiana's 5th congressional district. She won the Republican primary election on June 2, 2020.

Spartz won the general election in November. She defeated Christina Hale, the Democratic candidate, by four percent. This was a very close race for the district. Spartz won by getting many votes in her home county, Hamilton County.

2022 Election for Congress

In 2021, Indiana changed the boundaries of its congressional districts. The 5th district became more Republican. It no longer included parts of Indianapolis. Instead, it now included cities like Muncie and Anderson.

Spartz ran unopposed in the primary election. She then defeated Democratic candidate Jeanine Lee Lake in the general election.

2024 Election for Congress

In late 2022, there were talks that Spartz might run for the U.S. Senate. However, in February 2023, she announced she would not run for any office in 2024. But in December 2023, she changed her mind. She said she would reconsider running because her colleagues and voters wanted her to. She confirmed her decision to run for re-election in February 2024.

She won the Republican primary election on May 7, 2024.

On July 1, 2024, it was announced that Spartz was charged with a weapons violation. This happened at Dulles International Airport. Her office stated that she accidentally carried an empty handgun in her suitcase. She received a summons to appear in court.

Time in Office

Victoria Spartz is the first person born in Ukraine to serve in the United States Congress.

In late 2020, Spartz joined a group of new Republican House members called the Freedom Force. This group said they were fighting against socialism in America.

In September 2021, it was reported that Spartz did not properly report a stock purchase. This was a violation of the STOCK Act, a law about transparency for members of Congress.

Spartz's office has had many staff members leave. In 2021, her office had a very high staff turnover rate. This means many people left their jobs there. Some former aides described a difficult work environment. Spartz said her working style "is not for everyone" and that critics "need to 'toughen up'".

In June 2024, her chief of staff and communications director both left their jobs. The House ethics committee started looking into claims of "abuse" and "rage" towards her staff.

In December 2024, Spartz announced she would leave the House Republican Conference. This meant she would not take Republican committee assignments. She said she would do this until she saw "Republican leadership in Congress is governing". She stated she would remain a Republican Party member. However, since the 119th Congress began, she has been listed as a member of the Republican Conference and has been attending their events.

Speaker Elections in 2023

In January 2023, during the election for Speaker of the House, Spartz did not vote for the Republican nominee, Kevin McCarthy, on several ballots. She voted "present" instead. She did vote for him on the first three ballots and later on the 12th through 15th ballots. After McCarthy became Speaker, she was critical of his leadership. She voted against removing him from his position in October 2023.

In the first vote for a new speaker in October 2023, Spartz did not vote for the party nominee, Jim Jordan. She voted for Thomas Massie instead. She voted for the party nominee in all later ballots.

Russian Invasion of Ukraine

Spartz (second from left) joins President Biden, Rep. Elissa Slotkin, Vice President Harris, and Senator Ben Cardin for the signing of the Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act of 2022. May 2022

Spartz called the Russian invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 "a genocide of the Ukrainian people". She was one of the first U.S. officials to call Russia's actions "war crimes". When the invasion began, Spartz had family in Ukraine, including her grandmother. Her grandmother lived in Chernihiv, which was under attack by Russia.

During the invasion, Spartz visited Ukraine twice in April 2022. Her first visit was to Bucha with U.S. Senator Steve Daines. They were the first U.S. officials to visit Ukraine after the war started. Her second trip was to Lviv, Kyiv, and Odesa. She met with Metropolitan Epifaniy during this trip. Spartz has said that international aid efforts were too slow and not effective enough.

In July 2022, Spartz criticized Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. She accused him of "playing politics and theater" and not being serious about governing. She also said that there was not enough monitoring of weapons provided by the U.S.

Also in July, Spartz made several accusations against Andrii Yermak. He is a top official in Ukraine's government. She asked the White House to investigate these claims. The Foreign Ministry of Ukraine said Spartz's accusations were "baseless speculation".

In 2024, Spartz voted against a $60 billion aid package for Ukraine. This vote came shortly after a Russian missile strike on Chernihiv, her hometown. The strike killed 18 civilians. Some people in Chernihiv felt betrayed by her vote against the aid.

Committee Assignments

For the 118th Congress, Victoria Spartz served on these committees:

• Committee on the Judiciary
  • Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement
  • Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform and Antitrust

Caucus Membership

Spartz is part of several groups in Congress, including:

• Republican Study Committee
• Congressional Ukraine Caucus
• House Baltic Caucus
• Bulgaria Caucus
• French Caucus
• German-American Caucus
• Caucus on Hellenic Issues
• Slovak Caucus
• Caucus on Poland
• United Kingdom Caucus

Political Views

Health Care

In 2020, Spartz spoke against the Affordable Care Act. After winning the primary, she spoke less about her opposition to it.

In 2021, Spartz joined a Republican group focused on making health care more affordable. In 2022, she proposed bills to lower health care costs. These bills aimed to stop unfair business practices in the health care industry.

Spartz has introduced laws to give the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) power to control hospital mergers. She believes that hospital monopolies can harm health care.

Socialism

Spartz was born in Ukraine when it was part of the Soviet Union. She has criticized the growing popularity of socialism in the United States. Her experiences growing up helped shape her belief that too much government involvement can be bad.

United States Government Debt

Spartz often talks about being careful with government money. She is known as a "fiscal hawk."

She was one of 71 Republicans who voted against the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023. This act helped end the 2023 United States debt-ceiling crisis. It set limits on government spending and debt. Spartz also voted against a compromise that prevented a government shutdown in September 2023.

In October 2023, Spartz said she would resign if a commission to manage the national debt was not created by the end of 2024. She supports a bill called the Fiscal Commission Act of 2023.

Agricultural Programs

In 2023, Spartz introduced a bill to stop federal money from being used by certain agricultural programs. These programs support research and promotion for specific farm products. Spartz also supports a bill to add more oversight to these programs.

Personal Life

Victoria met her husband, Jason Spartz, on a train in 2000. They have two daughters. They live in Noblesville, Indiana. Spartz follows the Eastern Orthodox faith.

See also

In Spanish: Victoria Spartz para niños

• Women in the United States House of Representatives