Steve Yeager
Speaker of the Nevada Assembly
Assumed office
April 28, 2022[lower-alpha 1]
Preceded byJason Frierson
Speaker pro tempore of the Nevada Assembly
In office
February 4, 2019 – February 6, 2023
Preceded byIrene Bustamante Adams
Succeeded byDaniele Monroe-Moreno
Member of the Nevada Assembly
from the 9th district
Assumed office
November 9, 2016
Preceded byDavid M. Gardner
Personal details
Born
Steven James Yeager

(1978-10-13) October 13, 1978
Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Bita Yeager
​
(m. 2013)​
EducationUniversity of Michigan (BA)
Cornell University (JD)

Steven James Yeager (born October 13, 1978) is an American politician and attorney serving as the speaker of the Nevada Assembly since 2022. A member of the Democratic Party, Yeager has represented the 9th district since 2016. His district covers parts of the southwestern Las Vegas Valley.

Early life and education

Yeager was born on October 13, 1978, in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. The second of three children, he was raised in Michigan and attended Bedford High School. His parents worked in department stores and divorced when Yeager was in junior high school.[1]

Yeager graduated from the University of Michigan in 2001 with a Bachelor of Arts in history and Spanish. He then attended Cornell Law School, graduating with a Juris Doctor in 2004.[2] During college, he volunteered for the 2000 presidential campaign of Al Gore.[3]

Yeager attended and graduated from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Citizens' Police Academy in 2018 during his first term in the Nevada Assembly.[4]

Career

After law school, Yeager practiced law in Phoenix, Arizona, at the law firm Bryan Cave. He moved to Nevada in 2009 and worked as a chief deputy public defender of Clark County until his election to the Nevada Assembly in 2016. After winning his election, he became a partner and personal injury attorney at Battle Born Injury Lawyers.[5]

Yeager first ran for the Nevada Assembly in 2014, winning the Democratic primary but losing the general election to Republican David M. Gardner.[6][7] He ran for Assembly again in 2016, defeating Gardner with 55% of the vote.[8] He has been re-elected three times since and is now serving his fourth term in the Assembly.

Yeager chaired the Assembly Judiciary Committee from 2017 to 2023 and was elected Assembly speaker pro tempore in 2019. When then-Speaker Jason Frierson resigned to became a U.S. attorney in 2022, Yeager became acting speaker. He was elected Assembly speaker in 2023.

Personal life

Yeager lives in Las Vegas with his wife, Bita, who is an elected judge for the Eighth Judicial District Court in Clark County.[9] They met in the Clark County public defender's office and married in 2013.[1]

Yeager is an avid runner, hiker, and biker.[10] He has a running blog called Battle Born Running.[11]

Political positions

Yeager supports increased background checks for gun purchases and also supports the legalization of marijuana.[12]

Electoral history

Nevada Assembly District 9 Democratic primary, 2014[13]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Steve Yeager 814 62.9%
Democratic Joe Tinio 240 18.6%
Democratic Kelly W. Mercer 239 18.5%
Total votes 1,293 100.0%
Nevada Assembly District 9 election, 2014[14]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican David M. Gardner 5,630 52.1%
Democratic Steve Yeager 5,176 47.9%
Total votes 10,806 100.0%
Nevada Assembly District 9 election, 2016[15]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Steve Yeager 15,181 55.3%
Republican David M. Gardner 12,262 44.7%
Total votes 27,443 100.0%

Notes

  1. ↑ Acting: April 28, 2022 – February 6, 2023

References

  1. 1 2 "From public defender to Assembly speaker, Steve Yeager's rise to Legislature's helm". The Nevada Independent. 2023-03-26. Archived from the original on 2023-03-26. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  2. ↑ "Voters Guide 2018". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on 2023-03-25. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  3. ↑ "From public defender to Assembly speaker, Steve Yeager's rise to Legislature's helm". The Nevada Independent. 2023-03-26. Archived from the original on 2023-03-26. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  4. ↑ "Assemblyman Steve Yeager". www.leg.state.nv.us. Archived from the original on 2023-10-11. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  5. ↑ "Steve Yeager's Biography". Project VoteSmart. Archived from the original on December 15, 2017. Retrieved December 14, 2017.
  6. ↑ Blasky, Mike (May 25, 2014). "Three Democrats squaring off for Assembly District 9 seat". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on December 15, 2017. Retrieved December 14, 2017.
  7. ↑ "Steve Yeager to seek election to Nevada Assembly". Reno Gazette-Journal. December 18, 2013. Archived from the original on November 18, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2017.
  8. ↑ Messerly, Megan (January 28, 2017). "Freshman Orientation: Democratic Assemblyman Steve Yeager". The Nevada Independent. Archived from the original on December 15, 2017. Retrieved December 14, 2017.
  9. ↑ "Department I". Eighth Judicial District Court. Archived from the original on 2023-03-31. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  10. ↑ "Steve Yeager". Battle Born Injury Lawyers. Archived from the original on 2023-06-08. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  11. ↑ "Blog". Battle Born Running. Archived from the original on 2023-04-10. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  12. ↑ Chereb, Sandra (October 29, 2016). "State Assembly District 9". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on December 15, 2017. Retrieved December 14, 2017.
  13. ↑ "NV State Assembly 09 - D Primary 2014". Our Campaigns. Archived from the original on December 15, 2017. Retrieved December 14, 2017.
  14. ↑ "NV State Assembly 09 2014". Our Campaigns. Archived from the original on December 15, 2017. Retrieved December 14, 2017.
  15. ↑ "NV State Assembly 09 2016". Our Campaigns. Archived from the original on December 15, 2017. Retrieved December 14, 2017.
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