Dave Beckwith

Dave Beckwith is the Republican nominee challenging Democratic Rep. Suhas Subramanyam in Virginia's 10th District. A retired Air Force colonel, he later served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense at the Pentagon and worked for defense contractors. He lost the 2022 Republican primary for this seat and won the August 2026 primary; according to his Ballotpedia survey responses, he is running on tax relief, deficit reduction, an "all-of-the-above" energy strategy and support for law enforcement.[1][2][3][4]

Beckwith lives in Sterling, Virginia, and according to his Ballotpedia survey response has lived in Loudoun County for 17 years.[2][3] He earned a B.S. in aerospace engineering from the University of Notre Dame and a master's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Dayton, and he is a graduate of the U.S. Army War College.[1][2] He served 30 years in the U.S. Air Force, retiring in 2017 as a colonel, and his service included intelligence community acquisition oversight with the National Reconnaissance Office, the NSA and the Defense Intelligence Agency.[2][4]

Beckwith went on to serve as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense at the Pentagon; according to his survey response, he managed a $500 billion portfolio spanning space systems, nuclear and missile defense, and national intelligence.[1][2][3][4] After leaving the Air Force he worked at the government contractors Orbital ATK and SAIC.[2][3]

Beckwith ran for the Republican nomination in Virginia's 10th District in 2022 and lost the primary to Hung Cao, who went on to lose the general election to Rep. Jennifer Wexton.[3] On August 4, 2026, he won the Republican primary with about 72.5% of the vote over Julie Perry, Anthony Suttles and Sam Wong; the Prince William Times reported it was the first primary he had won.[2][3] According to his survey response, he serves in his church, including its missions ministry, travels to Malawi each summer to support students' education and clean-water projects, and is a two-time cancer survivor.[2]

Researched from the cited sources on 2026-10-21.