U.S. House · California's 16th Congressional District
Peter Soule
CandidateR
- Race
- U.S. House · California's 16th Congressional District
- Result
- Sam Liccardo, projected winner
- Opponent
- Sam Liccardo (D)
- Research
- Basic
Party linenone
No recorded floor votes — not a current legislator in our records.
Said vs. did2 statements · 0 votes
Peter Soule, a Republican, lost the November 3, 2026 election for California's 16th Congressional District to Sam Liccardo. According to his campaign website, he worked in his family's steel business, served on the San Jose Civil Service Commission from 2007 to 2011, and has been a Santa Clara County Republican volunteer and central committee member since 2004-2005.[1][2][3]
Compare statements with votes ›On the ballotU.S. House · 16
2026-11-03
| Sam Liccardo D | incumbent |
| Peter Soule R | challenger |
Won the June 2, 2026 top-two primary with about 11% of the vote.
Said vs. did
Each documented position next to the recorded floor votes we map to the same issue. Votes are compared one at a time; no overall stance is inferred from them.
Says he will advocate for withholding federal dollars from cities that enforce sanctuary-city policies that prevent the deportation of people in the country illegally who commit crimes.
Documented position[4]
No recorded floor vote in our key-vote set maps to this issue.
Says he will oppose local policies that limit Second Amendment rights.
Documented position[4]
No recorded floor vote in our key-vote set maps to this issue.
Biography
Peter Soule, a Republican, lost the November 3, 2026 election for California's 16th Congressional District to Sam Liccardo. According to his campaign website, he worked in his family's steel business, served on the San Jose Civil Service Commission from 2007 to 2011, and has been a Santa Clara County Republican volunteer and central committee member since 2004-2005.[1][2][3]
Basic profile — the most important sourced facts we found.
Soule holds a B.A. from UC Santa Barbara and an M.B.A. in Finance from Golden Gate University, according to his campaign website.[1][5] He worked in the family steel business, Soule Steel, in San Francisco and Los Angeles, which his campaign site says his grandfather founded in 1911, and lists roles in commercial property management, accounting and finance, and the architectural products division.[1] He served on the San Jose Civil Service Commission from 2007 to 2011.[1]
According to his campaign website, Soule has volunteered in every election since 2004 for the Santa Clara County Republican Party and individual candidates, was Supervisorial District 4 leader for the Silicon Valley GOP in 2020, and has served on its central committee since 2005 as a member or alternate and as a California Republican Party delegate.[1] He campaigned on public safety, reducing state regulation, lowering housing and energy costs, and immigration enforcement.[2] He received 22.8% of the vote to Sam Liccardo's 77.2%, according to unofficial results reported by NBC News.[3]
In their own words
Priorities
- Says he will advocate for withholding federal funds from cities with sanctuary-city policies and for removing federal highway funds from states that issue commercial driver's licenses to people who cannot read English.[4]
- Says he will work to lower the cost of water for farmers by reforming the federal Endangered Species Act and increasing water storage capacity, and to make energy more affordable by easing restrictions on oil drilling and refineries in California.[4]
- Says he will work to reduce housing costs by banning large financial institutions from buying single-family homes and shielding Baby Boomers who sell homes from capital gains tax.[4]
Statements, quoted without a stance
- Public funding for school choice (vouchers / charters)
“Enact Federal policies to protect parental rights and enable parents to send their children to their school of choice.”[4]
On his campaign website's issues page
- Faster transition away from fossil fuels
“Make energy more affordable by removing restrictions on drilling for oil and building refineries in California.”[4]
On his campaign website's issues page
Campaign money$400 raised · 75% from individuals · FEC through 2026-06-30
Totals this cycle
Bars share one scale (raised = full). Cash on hand can include money carried over from earlier cycles.
Who gave
- Individuals $300
- Own money & loans $100
Largest committee contributions
No direct contributions from PACs or other committees in the FEC’s bulk data.
Direct contributions only; outside spending is not included. Individual donors are itemized in the FEC’s receipts. All itemized receipts ↗ FEC filing ↗
Profile: /people/peter-soule
Compare all 2 candidates side by side ›
Sources cited in this profile
- 1.About · Peter Soule for Congress Candidate's own words
- 2.Issues That Matter · Peter Soule for Congress campaign website Candidate's own words
- 3.U.S. House · California's 16th Congressional District results 2026 · NBC News News report
- 4.Issues That Matter · Peter Soule for Congress campaign website Candidate's own words
- 5.Peter Soule · Ballotpedia Reference