Whitney Williams

Last updated
Whitney Williams
Personal details
Born1970or1971(age 52–53)
Montana, U.S.
Political party Democratic
Parents
Relatives Griff Williams (brother)
Education University of Montana (BA)

Whitney Williams (born 1970/1971) [1] is an American businesswoman and political candidate. In October 2019, Williams announced her candidacy for the 2020 Montana gubernatorial election, [2] [3] but she was defeated in the Democratic primary.

Contents

Early life and education

Williams is a sixth-generation Montana native. She is the daughter of the former Montana Senate majority leader Carol Williams and former congressman Pat Williams. [4] [5] The Washington Post has called the Williams family the "first family of Montana politics." [6]

Williams earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Montana, where she studied political science, forestry and Native American studies. [7]

Career

Williams worked in the Clinton administration, first as an intern, and then as travel director for first lady Hillary Clinton. [8] Williams later served as Washington State finance cochairman for Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential campaign. [5]

In 2001, she joined Casey Family Programs and helped establish the $600 million Marguerite Casey Foundation. [5] [9] Since 2003, Williams has served as founder and CEO of williamsworks, a Montana-based consultancy agency. [10] The firm has provided strategic services to nonprofit, philanthropic and corporate clients including Toms Shoes, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Nike Foundation, the Wikimedia Foundation and Thorn. [8] [11] [12]

Williams is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. [13]

Philanthropy

Williams previously served on the board of trustees for the Glacier National Park Fund as well as on the boards of directors for City Year Seattle and New Futures. [5] In 2010, Williams cofounded the Eastern Congo Initiative with Ben Affleck and serves on the board as vice chairman. [8] In 2021, she founded the Snowbird Fund, which provides financial support for Montana families who are searching for missing family members. [14]

Politics

On October 3, 2019, Williams announced her candidacy for Governor of Montana in 2020, receiving an endorsement from former governor Brian Schweitzer. [15] [16]

She faced incumbent lieutenant governor Mike Cooney but lost the June 2, 2020 Democratic primary with 45.14% of the vote. [17] Cooney lost the general election to former congressman Greg Gianforte. [18]

Democratic primary results [17]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Mike Cooney 81,527 54.86%
Democratic Whitney Williams67,06645.14%
Total votes148,593 100.00%

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References

  1. ↑ Whitney Williams 2020 Election Questionnaire
  2. ↑ "Montana Democrat Whitney Williams announces run for governor". Missoula Current. 2019-10-03. Retrieved 2019-10-05.
  3. ↑ "Whitney for Montana". secure.ngpvan.com. Retrieved 2019-10-05.
  4. ↑ Sally Mauk. "Congressman's daughter follows her parents into a life of public service". mtpr.org.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Whitney Williams". williamsworks. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
  6. ↑ Cillizza, Chris. "Fix Clip -N- Save: 'First families' of politics". Washington Post. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
  7. ↑ "Whitney Williams". williamsworks.com. Retrieved 2019-10-05.
  8. 1 2 3 Rapkin, Mickey. "When Ben Affleck Wants to Change the World, He Calls This Woman". Elle. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
  9. ↑ "Carrying on family legacy: Whitney Williams goes global". Montana Standard.
  10. ↑ Whinney, Joe; Williams, Whitney (2013-11-11). "Seattle, Congo and the chocolate trade". Seattle Times . Archived from the original on 2013-12-03. Retrieved 2014-04-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  11. ↑ "williamsworks Clients". williamsworks. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
  12. ↑ "Strategy/Wikimedia movement/2017/People/Core team - Meta". meta.wikimedia.org. Retrieved 2019-10-05.
  13. ↑ "Membership Roster". Council on Foreign Relations . Archived from the original on 2023-07-31. Retrieved 2023-08-09.
  14. ↑ "Fund instituted to help Native families find missing people". AP News. Associated Press. 10 February 2021. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
  15. ↑ Volz, Matt (3 October 2019). "Williams now 4th Democrat in governor's race". Great Falls Tribune. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
  16. ↑ Schweitzer, Brian (17 May 2020). "Guest view: Schweitzer backs Williams for governor". Billings Gazette. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
  17. 1 2 "2020 STATEWIDE PRIMARY ELECTION CANVASS" (PDF). Montana Secretary of State Corey Stapleton. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
  18. ↑ "General Election - November 3, 2020". electionresults.mt.gov. Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
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