U.S. House · Florida's 11th District
Ralph Groves
CandidateLIB
- Race
- U.S. House · Florida's 11th District
- Result
- Joe Strada, projected winner
- Opponents
- James Pericola (D); Joe Strada (R)
- Research
- Basic
Party linenone
No recorded floor votes — not a current legislator in our records.
Said vs. did5 statements · 0 votes
In extreme cases, abortion should be decided by women and their doctors, not government.
Protect legal access to abortion
Compare statements with votes ›On the ballotU.S. House · 11
2026-11-03
| James Pericola D | challenger |
| Joe Strada R | challenger |
| Ralph Groves LIB | challenger |
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.
In extreme cases, abortion should be decided by women and their doctors, not government.
Describes himself as pro-life and opposes government funding for abortion providers, but says that in limited cases abortion should be decided by women and their doctors, not government.[5]
No recorded floor vote in our key-vote set maps to this issue.
Expanded background checks will not keep guns out of the hands of criminals and gang members; in any case, such checks will be inexact as not all records about people are available to adjudicators.
Opposes new restrictions on gun ownership, including expanded background checks, and supports upholding gun rights under the 2nd Amendment.[6]
No recorded floor vote in our key-vote set maps to this issue.
will call for reduction of Federal taxes to stimulate the economy
Calls for reducing federal taxes generally rather than raising them, arguing lower taxes will stimulate the economy.[5]
No recorded floor vote in our key-vote set maps to this issue.
Transition to “green energy” will take decades to accomplish.
Supports increasing fossil fuel output and says a transition to renewable energy will take decades, rather than favoring a faster shift away from fossil fuels.[5]
No recorded floor vote in our key-vote set maps to this issue.
a broad range of options should be available to parents, including a voucher system and homeschooling
Supports abolishing the federal Department of Education and giving parents options including vouchers and homeschooling.[5]
No recorded floor vote in our key-vote set maps to this issue.
Biography
Ralph Groves, a Libertarian Party candidate and retired U.S. Army major, lost the November 3, 2026 election for Florida's 11th Congressional District to Joe Strada. An Iraq War veteran, he worked as a civilian Defense Intelligence Agency analyst from 1999 to 2018 and is a former chairman of the Libertarian Party of Orange County.[1][2][3][4]
Basic profile — the most important sourced facts we found.
Groves served on active duty in the Army in the United States and Germany, including with Military Intelligence Group-Europe in Heidelberg, before moving into civilian service as a Defense Department analyst.[3][4] He earned a Doctor of Arts degree in history from St. John's University, according to his campaign website.[4] From 1999 to 2018 he worked as a civilian analyst for the Defense Intelligence Agency, covering West African countries from RAF Molesworth, England, from 1999 to 2015 and then Iran from DIA headquarters in Washington, including a year at the Pentagon from 2015 to 2018.[3]
Groves also served in the Army Reserve as a detachment commander with the 209th Army Liaison Team. He was mobilized for the Iraq War in 2008 and 2009 on the staff of General Petraeus in Baghdad, and he retired from the Army as a major in 2010.[3] He has written books and scholarly articles on Iran, Afghanistan and Cote d'Ivoire, including Soviet Raison d'etat and Relations with Iran's Communist Parties, 1920-1979 and Iran's Shi'ite Clerics' Opposition to the Shah, 1959-1979.[3]
Groves is a former chairman of the Libertarian Party of Orange County and, according to his campaign website, is active with the American Legion and the Southeastern Food Bank.[3][7][4] His campaign website said he was running on an anti-war platform, protecting Medicare and Social Security, and gun ownership.[2][3][4] He received 1.1% of the vote to Joe Strada's 52.9%, according to unofficial results reported by NBC News.[1] He lives in Ocoee, Florida, and his campaign website says he is married and has five children and three grandchildren.[3][4]
In their own words
Priorities
- Opposes U.S. involvement in foreign conflicts, including calling for an immediate cease-fire and mediated peace talks in Ukraine while European allies do more to counter Russia.[5]
- Favors simplified, reasonable processes for legal immigration while opposing illegal and unregulated migration.[5]
- Would uphold Social Security and Medicare while calling for reduced federal taxes.[5]
Campaign moneyNo FEC filing summary matched — state candidates file with their state, not the FEC.
Profile: /people/ralph-groves
Compare all 3 candidates side by side ›
Sources cited in this profile
- 1.U.S. House · Florida's 11th District results 2026 · NBC News News report
- 2.Ralph Groves · Ballotpedia Reference
- 3.Ralph Groves For Congress (home) · Groves for Congress Candidate's own words
- 4.Meet Ralph Groves · Ralph Groves for Congress Candidate's own words
- 5.Ralph's Mission · Groves for Congress Candidate's own words
- 6.Position Papers — Gun Ownership in the Context of America’s Social Problems · Groves for Congress Candidate's own words
- 7.Position Papers — Gun Ownership in the Context of America’s Social Problems · Groves for Congress Candidate's own words