Don Beyer

Donald Sternoff Beyer Jr. ( BY-ər; born June 20, 1950) is an American politician, businessman, and diplomat serving as the U.S. representative for Virginia's 8th congressional district since 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, Beyer served as United States ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein from 2009 to 2013. Beyer has owned automobile dealerships in Virginia and has a long record of community and philanthropic involvement. From 1990 to 1998, he served two terms as the thirty-sixth lieutenant governor of Virginia during the gubernatorial administrations of Doug Wilder (1990–1994) and George Allen (1994–1998). His party's nominee for governor of Virginia in 1997, he lost to Republican Jim Gilmore, who was then the attorney general of Virginia. In 2014, Beyer announced his candidacy for the U.S. House of Representatives seat for Virginia's 8th congressional district, held by the retiring Jim Moran. Beyer won the twelve-candidate Democratic primary in June with 45% of the vote and went on to win the general election by thirty points. He has since been reelected five times, most recently in 2024. His district is located in Northern Virginia and includes Alexandria, Falls Church, Arlington, and parts of eastern Fairfax County.