Victoria Spartz Bio
Victoria Spartz (née Kulheyko; born October 6, 1978) is a Ukrainian-born American politician and businesswoman serving as the U.S. representative for Indiana’s 5th congressional district. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served in the Indiana Senate representing the 20th district. Spartz immigrated to the United States in 2000 and became a naturalized citizen in 2006, building a career as a certified public accountant, real estate broker, and finance executive before entering elected office.
Spartz holds a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Business Administration from Kyiv National Economic University, as well as a Master of Accountancy from Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis. She is the first Ukrainian-born person to serve in the United States Congress and is known for her fiscal conservatism and outspoken positions on U.S. policy toward Ukraine.
Early Life and Background
Victoria Kulheyko was born in Nosivka, in the Chernihiv Oblast of Ukraine, which at the time was part of the Soviet Union. She lived with her grandparents until the age of five, after which her family moved to the city of Chernihiv. There, she studied at a lyceum and graduated with a gold medal, the highest academic distinction awarded in the Ukrainian school system.
She went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree and a Master of Business Administration from Kyiv National Economic University, one of Ukraine’s leading institutions for economics and finance. Her upbringing in the late Soviet period shaped her political outlook, and she has described government involvement as inherently ineffective, arguing it should be used sparingly to encourage private initiative.
In 2000, at the age of 22, Spartz immigrated to the United States. She became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 2006. To support her new career, she earned a Master of Accountancy from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis.
Path to US Politics
After settling in Indiana, Spartz built a professional foundation in finance and real estate. She held a certified public accountant license from 2010 to 2021 and a real estate broker license from 2003 to 2020, both issued by the State of Indiana. She also owned real estate and farming businesses, and served as an adjunct faculty member at the Kelley School of Business in Indianapolis.
Spartz entered politics as a founding member of the Hamilton County, Indiana Tea Party, reflecting her small-government philosophy. She later served as Chief Financial Officer in the Indiana Attorney General’s office, gaining experience in state-level financial management and public administration.
In 2017, Spartz was appointed to the Indiana Senate to represent the 20th district following the resignation of State Senator Luke Kenley. Her time in the Indiana Senate established her as a fiscal conservative and prepared her for a successful run for federal office.
Victoria Spartz Career
U.S. House Campaign (2019–2020)
After incumbent Republican Susan Brooks announced in June 2019 that she would not seek reelection, Spartz declared her candidacy for Indiana’s 5th congressional district. She won the Republican primary on June 2, 2020, in a competitive field of candidates.
In the November 2020 general election, Spartz defeated former state representative Christina Hale, the Democratic nominee, by roughly four percentage points. The Cook Political Report had rated the race a toss-up, and it became the closest congressional race in the district since it was reconfigured as a northern suburban seat in 1983. Spartz prevailed largely by carrying her home county of Hamilton, where she won by more than 20,000 votes.
First Term in Congress (2021–2022)
Upon taking office in January 2021, Spartz became the first Ukrainian-born member of the United States Congress. She was identified as a participant in the Freedom Force, a group of incoming Republican House members who pledged to fight socialist policies in the United States.
Her first term also brought scrutiny. In September 2021, Business Insider reported that Spartz had violated the STOCK Act of 2012 by failing to properly disclose a stock purchase in Simon Property Group. Her office was also marked by unusually high staff turnover, with Legistorm measuring her 2021 turnover at three and a half times the House average, the highest among non-retiring members.
In 2022, Spartz ran unopposed in the Republican primary and defeated Democratic nominee Jeanine Lee Lake in the general election after redistricting made the 5th district significantly more Republican.
Second Term and Ukraine Policy (2023–2024)
Spartz’s second term was dominated by her engagement with the Russian invasion of Ukraine. She was among the first U.S. officials to label Russian actions in Ukraine as war crimes and described the invasion as a genocide of the Ukrainian people. In April 2022, she traveled to Ukraine twice, including an unannounced visit to Bucha with U.S. Senator Steve Daines, making them the first U.S. officials to enter the country after the war began.
In July 2022, Spartz publicly criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, accusing him of playing politics rather than governing seriously. She also raised six allegations against Andrii Yermak, a senior Ukrainian official, prompting pushback from the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry and some congressional colleagues. In 2024, Spartz voted against a $60 billion U.S. aid package for Ukraine, a decision that drew criticism from residents of her hometown of Chernihiv following a Russian missile strike on the city.
On domestic policy, Spartz positioned herself as a fiscal hawk. In October 2023, she said she would resign unless Congress created a commission to manage the national debt before the end of 2024, and she co-sponsored the Fiscal Commission Act of 2023. In 2025, she initially opposed the Republican budget resolution before reversing her position.
Victoria Spartz Family
Family Background and Personal Life
While studying in college, Victoria Kulheyko met her future husband, Jason Spartz, on a train traveling from Moscow to Kyiv. The couple married in 2000, the same year Victoria immigrated to the United States. They have two daughters and reside in Noblesville, Indiana. Spartz is Eastern Orthodox, a faith rooted in her Ukrainian heritage.
Throughout the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Spartz has had family still living in Ukraine, including her grandmother, who was residing in Chernihiv while the city was under siege by Russian forces. Her personal ties to the region have shaped her outspoken engagement with U.S. policy toward the war.