David Kustoff

Early life and career

David Kustoff was born on October 8, 1966 in Memphis, and raised in Shelby County, Tennessee. He graduated from Memphis' White Station High School in 1985. Kustoff attended the University of Memphis, graduating with a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1989. He then attended the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law, graduating in 1992.

In 1998, Kustoff opened a law firm with Jim Strickland, who he met at the University of Memphis. Both would become active in Tennessee politics; Strickland was elected Mayor of Memphis in 2015.

Kustoff became active in politics during the 1990s, in which he was chair of the Republican Party of Shelby County. He continued his political career in the 2000s, chairing George W. Bush's election campaigns in 2000 and 2004, as well as chairing the campaign of Lamar Alexander for one of Tennessee's seats in the U.S. Senate in 2002.

Kustoff unsuccessfully ran for Congress in the Republican primary for Tennessee's 7th congressional district in 2002. At the time, the district stretched from eastern Memphis to the Nashville suburbs. However, with two other Memphians, State Senator Mark Norris and city councilman Brent Taylor, splitting the Memphis area's vote, the primary was won by the only major candidate from the Nashville suburbs, State Senator Marsha Blackburn, who went on to win the general election.

U.S. Attorney

In 2006, President Bush appointed Kustoff the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee. During his tenure in office, Kustoff prosecuted the Operation Tennessee Waltz, after which John Ford, a prominent Tennessee politician, and others were sent to prison. Kustoff also worked to reduce crime in the Memphis area, joining a group of Memphis leaders and law enforcement officials called Operation Safe Community.

Kustoff resigned as U.S. Attorney in shortly before the 2008 election, choosing to return to his private practice.

Republican primary

In February 2016, Stephen Fincher announced that he would not run for re-election in Tennessee's 8th congressional district. Redistricting four years earlier had shifted eastern Memphis and most of its suburbs to the 8th. Kustoff joined a crowded Republican primary—the real contest in this heavily Republican district. He faced off against local leaders such as Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell, optometrist and perennial candidate George Flinn, Shelby County Election Commission Chair Tom Leatherwood, and State Senator Brian Kelsey. Flinn self-financed his campaign, spending $2.9 million, much of which went to TV ads.

Kustoff emphasized the themes of law and order and reducing crime, as well as campaigning on reducing illegal immigration and bringing down West Tennessee's high poverty rate. He praised Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam's Tennessee Promise program, which offers two years of free community college education to qualifying Tennessee residents. Kustoff began to emerge from the crowded pack when he was endorsed by former Arkansas Governor and Republican Presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, who filmed ads for Kustoff and campaigned with him. Kustoff won the Republican primary, outperforming better-funded and more well-known candidates. The race reflected the lowest primary turnout in the district since 2004.

General election

Kustoff faced Democrat Rickey Hobson, a Delta Air Lines manager and Somerville, Tennessee resident. This district is one of the most Republican districts in the nation, and Kustoff was heavily favored to win. In spite of this, Kustoff ran an active campaign, kicking off a tour of the district's 15 counties and urging skeptical Republicans to support Donald Trump for the presidency. Kustoff defeated Hobson in the general election.

National security

Kustoff supported President Donald Trump's 2017 executive order to temporarily curtail Muslim immigration until better screening methods are devised. He stated that “I believe President Trump is putting American safety first, and I will encourage a long-term plan that is consistent with the values and compassion on which our great nation was founded.”

Personal life

David Kustoff is married to Roberta Kustoff, who is also a lawyer at the Kustoff and Strickland Firm. The couple have two children. He practices Judaism, and, along with Lee Zeldin, is one of only two Republican Jewish members of the House of Representatives.

Kustoff serves on the board of directors of BankTennessee and as a member of the Tennessee Higher Education Commission.