William Timmons
William Timmons | |
---|---|
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from South Carolina's 4th district | |
Assumed office January 3, 2019 | |
Preceded by | Trey Gowdy |
Member of the South Carolina Senate from the 6th district | |
In office November 14, 2016 – November 9, 2018 | |
Preceded by | Mike Fair |
Succeeded by | Dwight Loftis |
Personal details | |
Born | William Richardson Timmons IV April 30, 1984 Greenville, South Carolina, U.S. |
Political party | Republican |
Spouse | Sarah Anderson (m. 2019) |
Education | George Washington University (BA) University of South Carolina (MA, JD) New York University (MS) |
Website | House website |
Military service | |
Allegiance | United States |
Branch/service | United States Air Force |
Years of service | 2018–present (South Carolina Air National Guard) |
Rank | Captain |
Unit | United States Air Force Judge Advocate General's Corps |
William Richardson Timmons IV (born April 30, 1984) is an American attorney, entrepreneur and politician serving as the U.S. representative for South Carolina's 4th congressional district since 2019. His district is in the heart of the Upstate and includes Greenville, Spartanburg, and most of their suburbs. A member of the Republican Party, Timmons served as the South Carolina state senator from the 6th district from 2016 to 2018.[1][2]
Early life and education
A native of Greenville, Timmons attended George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs, where he earned a degree in international affairs and political science. He earned a Juris Doctor and a master's degree in international studies from the University of South Carolina.
Timmons is a lifelong member of Christ Church in Greenville, and serves as a Captain in the South Carolina Air National Guard. On July 17, 2019, he married his wife, Sarah, on the balcony of the Capitol. Senator Tim Scott officiated.[3]
Timmons graduated from New York University in May 2021 with a Master of Science in cybersecurity.
Early career
Timmons spent four years working for the 13th Circuit solicitor's office. In this role, he focused on serving victims of domestic violence and helped create a central court for all domestic violence cases in Greenville County.[4]
Timmons owns Swamp Rabbit CrossFit and Soul Yoga, and previously operated the law firm Timmons & Company, LLC.
In 2016, Timmons challenged longtime state senator Mike Fair in the Republican primary for a Greenville-area district. He finished first in the primary with 49.5% of the vote, fewer than 100 votes shy of winning the nomination outright.[5] He then defeated Fair in the runoff with 65% of the vote[6] and faced no major-party opposition in the general election.[7]
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
2018
Timmons was elected to replace retiring Republican incumbent Trey Gowdy in South Carolina's 4th congressional district. His campaign slogan was "Washington is broken."[8][9] On June 10, Timmons placed second in a 13-candidate primary–the real contest in this heavily Republican district–receiving 19.2% of the vote. On June 28, 2018, Timmons defeated former state senator Lee Bright in the runoff with 54.2% of the vote. He did not have to give up his state senate seat to run for Congress; South Carolina state senators serve four-year terms that run concurrently with presidential elections.
Timmons defeated Brandon Brown in the November general election with 59.5% of the vote.[10][11] He became one of the youngest U.S. representatives from South Carolina since 1972.[12]
2020
Timmons defeated Democratic nominee Kim Nelson with 61.6% of the vote.[13]
2022
In a four-candidate Republican primary, Timmons prevailed with 52.7% of the vote;[14] he will face Democratic nominee Ken Hill in the general election.[15]
Tenure
Timmons was sworn into office on January 3, 2019, amid a government shutdown. He cosponsored legislation to require Congress to balance the budget, defund Planned Parenthood, support Gold Star Families, strengthen national defense, and promote school choice.[16]
Timmons serves on the Financial Services Committee, where he introduced legislation seeking to counter China's efforts to expand its 5G influence in countries receiving assistance from international financial institutions. He was elected by his classmates to represent the freshman class on the Republican Steering Committee.[17]
He introduced legislation proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to limit the number of consecutive terms that a member of Congress may serve (H.J.Res.86).[18]
Timmons supported President Donald Trump during his first impeachment, saying of the process, "It is very, very, very broken" (referring to his 2018 campaign slogan "Washington is broken"). He added that he thought the process would be fair in the Senate and called the opposition to impeachment "bipartisan."[19]
In December 2020, Timmons was one of 126 Republican members of the House of Representatives to sign an amicus brief in support of Texas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit filed at the United States Supreme Court contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which Joe Biden defeated[20] Trump. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lacked standing under Article III of the Constitution to challenge the results of an election held by another state.[21][22][23]
In January 2021, Timmons announced he would object to the certification of Biden as president.[24] When Congress reconvened after the storming of the United States Capitol, Timmons voted to object to the Electoral College results.[25]
Committee assignments
- Committee on Financial Services
- Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress, Vice Chair
- House Republican Steering Committee
Caucus memberships
Electoral history
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | William Timmons | 24,800 | 52.69 | |
Republican | Mark Burns | 11,214 | 23.83 | |
Republican | Michael Mike LaPierre | 8,029 | 17.06 | |
Republican | George Abuzeid | 3,024 | 6.42 | |
Total votes | 47,067 | 100.0 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | William Timmons | 222,126 | 61.61 | ||
Democratic | Kim Nelson | 133,023 | 36.89 | ||
Constitution | Michael Chandler | 5,090 | 1.41 | ||
N/A | Write-Ins | 311 | 0.09 | ||
Margin of victory | 83,702 | 23.4 | |||
Total votes | 360,550 | 100.0 | |||
Republican hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | William Timmons | 145,321 | 59.57 | ||
Democratic | Brandon Brown | 89,182 | 36.56 | ||
American | Guy Furay | 9,203 | 3.77 | ||
N/A | Write-Ins | 244 | 0.10 | ||
Margin of victory | 56,139 | 23.01 | |||
Total votes | 243,950 | 100.0 | |||
Republican hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | William Timmons | 37,096 | 54.29 | |
Republican | Lee Bright | 31,236 | 45.71 | |
Total votes | 68,332 | 100.0 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Lee Bright | 16,742 | 24.95 | |
Republican | William Timmons | 12,885 | 19.21 | |
Republican | Dan Hamilton | 12,494 | 18.62 | |
Republican | Josh Kimbrell | 7,465 | 11.13 | |
Republican | James Epley | 5,386 | 8.03 | |
Republican | Stephen Brown | 5,078 | 7.57 | |
Republican | Shannon Pierce | 2,442 | 3.64 | |
Republican | Mark Burns | 1,662 | 2.48 | |
Republican | Claude Schmid | 1,414 | 2.11 | |
Republican | Dan Albert | 510 | 0.76 | |
Republican | John Marshall Mosser | 457 | 0.68 | |
Republican | Justin David Sanders | 354 | 0.53 | |
Republican | Barry Bell | 200 | 0.3 | |
Total votes | 67,089 | 100.0 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | William Timmons | 31,732 | 85.10 | |
Constitution | Roy G. Magnuson | 5,556 | 14.90 | |
Total votes | 37,288 | 100.0 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | William Timmons | 6,244 | 65.30 | |
Republican | Michael Fair | 3,318 | 34.70 | |
Total votes | 9,562 | 100.0 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Michael Fair | 3,578 | 36.30 | |
Republican | William Timmons | 4,880 | 49.51 | |
Republican | Johnny Edwards | 1,399 | 14.19 | |
Total votes | 9,857 | 100.0 |
Personal life
In response to posts on social media, Timmons acknowledged in July 2022 that he and his wife were working on their marriage after "going through tough times" in recent months. He said other allegations were false and mostly defamatory and asked for "privacy and prayers." He told his constituents "don't be distracted" and emphasized that his personal life does not affect his congressional service.[29]
References
- ^ "William Timmons". Ballotpedia. Retrieved February 24, 2017.
- ^ "William Timmons". SC State House website. Retrieved February 24, 2017.
- ^ LaFleur, Elizabeth (August 2, 2019). "Rep. William Timmons marries on Senate balcony as Sen. Tim Scott officiates". Greenville News. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
- ^ "William Timmons for Congress".
- ^ "Our Campaigns - SC State Senate 06 - R Primary Race - Jun 14, 2016". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved February 14, 2021.
- ^ "Our Campaigns - SC State Senate 06 - R Runoff Race - Jun 28, 2016". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved February 14, 2021.
- ^ "Our Campaigns - SC State Senate 06 Race - Nov 08, 2016". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved February 14, 2021.
- ^ Lovegrove, Jamie (May 5, 2018). "In crowded GOP primary to replace Trey Gowdy, conservatives vie for Trump voters". The Post & Courier. Retrieved June 6, 2018.
- ^ Lovegrove, Jamie (December 18, 2019). "SC's 7 congressmen split along party lines as House votes to impeach Trump". The Post and Courier. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
- ^ "South Carolina Election Results: Fourth House District". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 8, 2018.
- ^ contact@scytl.com, scytl. "Election Night Reporting". www.enr-scvotes.org. Retrieved December 8, 2018.
- ^ Brown, Kirk (November 6, 2018). "William Timmons moves into Trey Gowdy's seat in SC's 4th Congressional District". The Greenville News. Retrieved December 8, 2018.
- ^ "2020 Statewide General Election Night Reporting - Results". South Carolina Election Commission. November 10, 2020. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
- ^ "2022 Statewide Primaries". South Carolina Election Commission. June 20, 2022. Retrieved July 19, 2022.
- ^ "11/8/2022 Statewide General Election Candidate Listing". South Carolina Election Commission. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
- ^ "Rep. Timmons Cosponsors his First Legislation". Timmons U.S. House website (Press release). January 28, 2019. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
- ^ "Timmons Introduces Bill to Counter China's Efforts to Expand 5G Influence". Timmons U.S. House website (Press release). February 12, 2020. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
- ^ "H.J.Res.86 – Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to limit the number of consecutive terms that a Member of Congress may serve". congress.gov. Library of Congress. March 5, 2020. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
- ^ Lovegrove, Jamie (December 18, 2019). "SC's 7 congressmen split along party lines as House votes to impeach Trump". The Post and Courier. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
- ^ Blood, Michael R.; Riccardi, Nicholas (December 5, 2020). "Biden officially secures enough electors to become president". AP News. Archived from the original on December 8, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
- ^ Liptak, Adam (December 11, 2020). "Supreme Court Rejects Texas Suit Seeking to Subvert Election". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
- ^ "Order in Pending Case" (PDF). Supreme Court of the United States. December 11, 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
- ^ Diaz, Daniella (December 11, 2020). "Brief from 126 Republicans supporting Texas lawsuit in Supreme Court". CNN. Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
- ^ Brown, Kirk (January 4, 2021). "SC congressmen join GOP effort to oppose Biden election results, but not Sen. Tim Scott". Greenville News. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
- ^ Brown, Kirk (January 7, 2021). "Duncan, Timmons and 3 other SC congressmen voted to object to Electoral College results". Greenville News. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
- ^ "Member List". Republican Study Committee. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
- ^ "Unofficial Results". 2020 Statewide General Elections November 3, 2020. South Carolina Election Commission. November 10, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
- ^ "Unofficial Results". 2018 Statewide General Elections November 6, 2018. South Carolina Election Commission. November 10, 2018. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
- ^ Houck, Taggart (July 19, 2022). "South Carolina Congressman William Timmons addresses rumors on social media regarding his personal life". WYFF-TV. Retrieved July 19, 2022.
External links
- Congressman William Timmons official U.S. House website
- William Timmons for Congress
- William Timmons at Ballotpedia
- Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
- Legislation sponsored at the Library of Congress
- Profile at Vote Smart
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- Use mdy dates from July 2022
- Articles with short description
- Short description with empty Wikidata description
- Articles without Wikidata item
- People appearing on C-SPAN
- AC with 0 elements
- 1984 births
- Living people
- 21st-century American lawyers
- 21st-century American politicians
- Elliott School of International Affairs alumni
- Politicians from Greenville, South Carolina
- Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from South Carolina
- South Carolina lawyers
- South Carolina National Guard personnel
- South Carolina state senators
- South Carolina state solicitors
- University of South Carolina alumni
- United States Army officers