Roger Williams (US politician)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

John Roger Williams (born ca. 1950) is the former secretary of state for the U.S. state of Texas, having served from November 2004 until his resignation effective July 1, 2007. Williams announced on June 11 that he would leave the appointed position to "pursue other opportunities". On July 16, Williams was named chairman of the Texas Republican Victory 2008 Coordinated Campaign, which assists candidates up and down the general election ballot.^[1]

Governor Rick Perry nominated his own deputy chief of staff, Phil Wilson, a native of Brownwood, to succeed Williams. Wilson's selection met the tentative approval of Democratic State Senator Kirk Watson, in whose Travis County district Wilson (born ca. 1968) resides. According to Watson, Wilson assured him that he will take no position as the presumptive secretary of state on the GOP-favored idea of asking voters to present photo identification or other proof of identity before voting. The appointment must be confirmed by two-thirds of state senators present and voting.

Williams was the fourth secretary of state to have served under the appointment of Perry. The others were now U.S. Representative Henry Cuellar of Laredo (January - October 2001), Gwen Shea (2002-2003), a former member of the Texas House of Representatives from Irving in Dallas County, and Geoffrey Connor (2003-2004), a native of Runnels County in central Texas.

Williams was reared in Fort Worth. He was a star baseball player for Texas Christian University from 1968-1971 and attempted to play professionally with the Atlanta Braves farm team. He returned to Texas to coach TCU's baseball team before he embarked on a career in business and public affairs. Williams joined his father in a family automobile dealership founded in 1939.

He is a trustee of TCU and the George Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University in College Station. Williams was appointed by Governor Perry to the Texas Motor Vehicle Board and by former Lieutenant Governor Bill Ratliff to the Special Committee on State Employee Compensation and Benefits.

As secretary of state, Williams served as Chief Election Officer for Texas, assisted county election officials and ensured the uniform application and interpretation of election laws through the state. He oversaw the state’s efforts to comply with the federal Help America Vote Act.

Williams worked to promote economic development, investment, and job creation in Texas. He was also Perry's chief liaison to Mexico and the Border Region of Texas. In this capacity, he worked with Mexican federal, state, and local officials on common issues.

As the overseer and director of Texas elections, Williams's office was in the spotlight during the 2006 Texas governor's race. Independent candidate Richard Friedman (commonly known as "Kinky") successfully lobbied to have the name "Kinky" placed on the election ballot. Another Independent candidate, Carole K. Strayhorn, sought to have the name "Grandma" placed on the ballot next to her name. (Strayhorn's campaign slogan was "one tough grandma".) Strayhorn's request was denied. Friedman and Strayhorn finished third and fourth, respectively, in the election, behind Democrat Chris Bell and the winner, incumbent Republican Perry.

Williams and his wife, Patty, live in Weatherford, the seat of Parker County west of Fort Worth, and have two daughters who were attending TCU in 2007. He owns an automobile dealership in Weatherford.