Eddie Joe Williams (born June 26, 1954) is an American politician who served as a member of the

Arkansas Senate The Arkansas State Senate is the upper branch of the Arkansas General Assembly. The Senate consists of 35 members, each representing a district with about 83,000 people. Service in the state legislature is part-time, and many state senators have ...

for the 29th district from 2011 to 2017. During his tenure in the Senate, Williams served as majority leader.

Early life

Williams was born in

Sheridan, Arkansas Sheridan is a city and county seat of Grant County, Arkansas, United States. The community is located deep in the forests of the Arkansas Timberlands. It sits at the intersection of US Highways 167 and 270. Early settlers were drawn to the are ...

. He graduated from Sheridan High School in 1972.

Career

Williams served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

and worked for the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

for thirty years. He served on the Cabot Planning Commission and the Cabot City Council before he was elected three times as mayor. He faced a $500,000 deficit when he became mayor of

Cabot, Arkansas Cabot is the largest city in Lonoke County, Arkansas, United States, and a suburb of Little Rock. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city was 23,776, and in 2019 the population was an estimated 26,352, ranking it as the state's 19th l ...

. Williams is a member of the

American Legislative Exchange Council The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is a nonprofit organization of conservative state legislators and private sector representatives who draft and share model legislation for distribution among state governments in the United State ...

(ALEC), a

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

non-partisan, non-profit legislative association. He and

Arkansas State Auditor The Arkansas State Auditor (formally known as the Auditor of State) is a constitutional officer within the executive branch of the U.S. state of Arkansas. Thirty-five individuals have occupied the office of state auditor since statehood. The incu ...

Andrea Lea Andrea Christine Lea (born 1957) is an American politician who served as the Arkansas State Auditor and is a Republican former member of the Arkansas House of Representatives from Russellville, Arkansas. She was elected state auditor on Novembe ...

, served at one time as the state co-chairs of the organization. On October 26, 2017, President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

appointed Williams as his federal representative to the Southern States Energy Board. Since leaving the Senate, Williams has served as senior legislative liaison to Governor

Asa Hutchinson William Asa Hutchinson II (, '' AY-sə''; born December 3, 1950) is an American attorney, businessman, and politician who is the 46th and current governor of Arkansas. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U.S. attorney for the Fort Smit ...

. In September 2021, Williams declared his candidacy for

secretary of state of Arkansas The secretary of state of Arkansas is one of the elected constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The current Secretary of State is Republican John Thurston, former Arkansas land commissioner from Pulaski County in central Arkan ...

in the 2022 election. In an interview following his candidacy, Williams claimed that he wasn't sure if Biden won the 2020 presidential election, and gave credence to false allegations of voter fraud by claiming that full investigations into voter fraud in swing states might have tilted the election for Biden.

Personal life

Williams and his wife, DeLona, have four daughters and seven grandchildren.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Eddie Joe 1954 births Living people 20th-century American railroad executives Republican Party Arkansas state senators Mayors of places in Arkansas People from Sheridan, Arkansas People from Cabot, Arkansas United States Army officers 21st-century American politicians