Kent Williams (politician)
Encyclopedia
Kent Williams is a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives
, representing District 4. He is the speaker
of that body in the 106th Tennessee General Assembly
(2009—2010). He was elected to the House in 2006 and reelected in 2008 as a Republican
. During his second term, he voted with all 49 House Democrats to elect himself Speaker. Shortly afterward, the state Republican executive committee threw him out of the party. Williams chose "Carter County Republican" as his new party designation.
, on June 23, 1949. His father worked as a laborer in one of the Elizabethton
rayon
mills. His family lived in Dale Hollow in the Sadie section of Stoney Creek, at the foot of Holston Mountain
.
Williams graduated from Unaka High School
and left Carter County to find work in Michigan
, where he worked in the kitchen of a large hospital and where he met his future wife, Gayle. Williams later returned to Elizabethton, where the couple raised their four sons.
Early in his career he worked for the Tennessee Department of Transportation
, but because he had been hired during a Republican administration, he lost that job in 1975 after Democrat
Ray Blanton
became governor.
Williams is a farmer and owns a restaurant in Elizabethton. He was previously a vice president of Steak Houses of Homestead Inc. and Family Steak Houses of Miami Inc.
of Johnson City during the Republican primary election
. In that campaign, he chastised Cochran for a lack of progress in state-funded projects in Carter County.
Jason Mumpower
out of the office. Williams, one of 50 Republicans in the 99-seat House, voted for himself alongside the assembly's 49 Democrats to clinch the position, defeating Mumpower by a vote of 50 to 49. Outgoing speaker Jimmy Naifeh instructed the House clerk to depart from the normal practice of conducting a roll call
of the members in alphabetical order, instead calling first on the Democrats, then on the Republicans. This allowed Williams to vote last, so that before he voted he knew that his vote for himself would be the deciding vote. After the vote he was booed and called a "traitor." Subsequently, Williams voted with the Democrats to elect Democrat Lois DeBerry
as speaker pro-tem over Republican Beth Harwell
.
Williams is considered a moderate by Tennessee Republican standards. He was one of seven Republicans who in 2007 had voted for Democrat Naifeh as speaker of the 105th General Assembly. He explained to a friend that if he "wanted to get anything done in Carter County [he] had to vote for Jimmy Naifeh."
After the November 2008 election in which Republicans won a one-seat majority in the House, Williams had joined the other 49 Republicans in the House in publicly pledging to vote for a Republican for speaker. He also had privately promised to vote for Mumpower. After voting with the Democrats, Williams acknowledged that he had broken a promise, but said that his votes were made in the best interest of the state.
After his election as speaker, the House Republicans expelled Williams from their caucus
and the party's state executive committee discussed removing him from the party
. On February 9, 2009, the Tennessee Republican Party
ousted Williams from the party. Williams said he had no intention of joining the Democratic Party, but continues to consider himself a Republican.'
Williams was reelected to the state House in 2010 as a Carter County Republican
, defeating Jerome Cochran (the official Republican nominee; there was no Democrat in the race) with 58% of the vote; but stated that in view of the sweeping victory of the Republican Party statewide, he would not seek re-election as Speaker. He was succeeded as Speaker by Republican Beth Harwell
.
Tennessee House of Representatives
The Tennessee House of Representatives is the lower house of the Tennessee General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee.-Constitutional requirements:...
, representing District 4. He is the speaker
Speaker (politics)
The term speaker is a title often given to the presiding officer of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body. The speaker's official role is to moderate debate, make rulings on procedure, announce the results of votes, and the like. The speaker decides who may speak and has the...
of that body in the 106th Tennessee General Assembly
Tennessee General Assembly
The Tennessee General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee.-Constitutional structure:According to the Tennessee State Constitution of 1870, the General Assembly is a bicameral legislature and consists of a Senate of thirty-three members and a House of Representatives of...
(2009—2010). He was elected to the House in 2006 and reelected in 2008 as a Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
. During his second term, he voted with all 49 House Democrats to elect himself Speaker. Shortly afterward, the state Republican executive committee threw him out of the party. Williams chose "Carter County Republican" as his new party designation.
Biography
Williams was born in Carter County, TennesseeCarter County, Tennessee
Carter County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2010, the population was 57,424. Its county seat is Elizabethton.Carter County is part of the Johnson City Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is a component of the Johnson City–Kingsport–Bristol, TN-VA Combined...
, on June 23, 1949. His father worked as a laborer in one of the Elizabethton
Elizabethton, Tennessee
Elizabethton is the county seat of Carter County, Tennessee, United States. Elizabethton is also the historical site both of the first independent American government located west of both the Eastern Continental Divide and the original thirteen British American colonies.Elizabethton is also the...
rayon
Rayon
Rayon is a manufactured regenerated cellulose fiber. Because it is produced from naturally occurring polymers, it is neither a truly synthetic fiber nor a natural fiber; it is a semi-synthetic or artificial fiber. Rayon is known by the names viscose rayon and art silk in the textile industry...
mills. His family lived in Dale Hollow in the Sadie section of Stoney Creek, at the foot of Holston Mountain
Holston Mountain
Holston Mountain is a mountain ridge in Upper East Tennessee and southwest Virginia, in the United States. It is in the Blue Ridge Mountains part of the Appalachian Mountains...
.
Williams graduated from Unaka High School
Unaka High School
Unaka High School is a public high school located northeast of Elizabethton, Tennessee in the foot hills of the Unaka Mountains. Unaka is located in what is known as "Stoney Creek."-History:...
and left Carter County to find work in Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, where he worked in the kitchen of a large hospital and where he met his future wife, Gayle. Williams later returned to Elizabethton, where the couple raised their four sons.
Early in his career he worked for the Tennessee Department of Transportation
Tennessee Department of Transportation
The Tennessee Department of Transportation is a multimodal agency with statewide responsibilities in aviation, public transit, waterways and railroads...
, but because he had been hired during a Republican administration, he lost that job in 1975 after Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Ray Blanton
Ray Blanton
Leonard Ray Blanton was the 44th Governor of Tennessee from 1975 to 1979. Blanton's administration was rife with corruption.-Early life and Congress:...
became governor.
Williams is a farmer and owns a restaurant in Elizabethton. He was previously a vice president of Steak Houses of Homestead Inc. and Family Steak Houses of Miami Inc.
Political career
Williams was first elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives in 2006, having defeated incumbent Jerome CochranJerome Cochran
Jerome Cochran is a Tennessee lawyer and Republican politician who served for two terms in the Tennessee House of Representatives...
of Johnson City during the Republican primary election
Primary election
A primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....
. In that campaign, he chastised Cochran for a lack of progress in state-funded projects in Carter County.
Speaker position
Williams was elected as speaker of the Tennessee House on January 13, 2009, in a surprising divergence from the Republican party's accepted plan for succession. Democrats, who had lost the majority in the House for the first time since 1969, threw their support behind Williams as a means of keeping House Majority LeaderMajority leader
In U.S. politics, the majority floor leader is a partisan position in a legislative body.In the federal Congress, the role differs slightly in the two houses. In the House of Representatives, which chooses its own presiding officer, the leader of the majority party is elected the Speaker of the...
Jason Mumpower
Jason Mumpower
Jason Everett Mumpower was a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives representing the 3rd District, which consists of all of Johnson County and part of Sullivan County....
out of the office. Williams, one of 50 Republicans in the 99-seat House, voted for himself alongside the assembly's 49 Democrats to clinch the position, defeating Mumpower by a vote of 50 to 49. Outgoing speaker Jimmy Naifeh instructed the House clerk to depart from the normal practice of conducting a roll call
Roll call
Roll call is the calling of the names of people from a list to determine the presence or absence of the listed people . The term applies to the calling itself, to the time moment of this procedure, and to a military signal that announces it Roll call is the calling of the names of people from a...
of the members in alphabetical order, instead calling first on the Democrats, then on the Republicans. This allowed Williams to vote last, so that before he voted he knew that his vote for himself would be the deciding vote. After the vote he was booed and called a "traitor." Subsequently, Williams voted with the Democrats to elect Democrat Lois DeBerry
Lois DeBerry
Lois Marie DeBerry is an American politician who is a member of Tennessee House of Representatives and former Speaker Pro Tempore of the Tennessee House...
as speaker pro-tem over Republican Beth Harwell
Beth Harwell
Beth Halteman Harwell is the current Speaker of the House in the Tennessee House of Representatives. She serves as Tennessee State Representative from Nashville and former Chairman of the Tennessee Republican Party from 2001 through 2004...
.
Williams is considered a moderate by Tennessee Republican standards. He was one of seven Republicans who in 2007 had voted for Democrat Naifeh as speaker of the 105th General Assembly. He explained to a friend that if he "wanted to get anything done in Carter County [he] had to vote for Jimmy Naifeh."
After the November 2008 election in which Republicans won a one-seat majority in the House, Williams had joined the other 49 Republicans in the House in publicly pledging to vote for a Republican for speaker. He also had privately promised to vote for Mumpower. After voting with the Democrats, Williams acknowledged that he had broken a promise, but said that his votes were made in the best interest of the state.
After his election as speaker, the House Republicans expelled Williams from their caucus
Caucus
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a political party or movement, especially in the United States and Canada. As the use of the term has been expanded the exact definition has come to vary among political cultures.-Origin of the term:...
and the party's state executive committee discussed removing him from the party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
. On February 9, 2009, the Tennessee Republican Party
Tennessee Republican Party
The Tennessee Republican Party is the affiliate of the United States Republican Party in Tennessee. It is often called the Tennessee Grand Old Party or the TN GOP.-Leadership and staff:...
ousted Williams from the party. Williams said he had no intention of joining the Democratic Party, but continues to consider himself a Republican.'
Williams was reelected to the state House in 2010 as a Carter County Republican
Independent Republican (United States)
Independent Republican is a term occasionally adopted by members of Congress in the United States to refer to their party affiliation and is also used for those on the state level who are Republicans but do not affiliate with the national Republican Party....
, defeating Jerome Cochran (the official Republican nominee; there was no Democrat in the race) with 58% of the vote; but stated that in view of the sweeping victory of the Republican Party statewide, he would not seek re-election as Speaker. He was succeeded as Speaker by Republican Beth Harwell
Beth Harwell
Beth Halteman Harwell is the current Speaker of the House in the Tennessee House of Representatives. She serves as Tennessee State Representative from Nashville and former Chairman of the Tennessee Republican Party from 2001 through 2004...
.