Brandon Williams (politician)

Brandon McDonald Williams (born May 22, 1967) is an American politician, farmer, and businessman serving as the U.S. representative for New York's 22nd congressional district since 2023. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Early life and career
Williams was born in Dallas, Texas, to James McDonald "Don" Williams and Judy Williams. He was the second of five children. Don, a corporate lawyer, would serve as chairman of the Trammell Crow Company from 1994 to 2002. George Seay was a childhood friend, whom he met in fifth grade at St. Mark's School of Texas. The two both attended Highland Park High School and played on the football team.

Williams enrolled at Baylor University after graduation but transferred to Pepperdine University after a year. At Pepperdine he was elected president of student government in his second year. In the summer before his senior year he volunteered with World Vision International in Africa, where he contracted a severe case of malaria. After taking a semester off to recover, he studied Asian studies at Harvard University for a year as a visiting student. In 1990, he graduated from Pepperdine with a Bachelor of Arts degree in liberal arts.

Williams joined the United States Navy in 1991, where he served as an officer on the submarine the USS Georgia. After leaving the U.S. Navy as a lieutenant in 1996, he studied at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, earning an MBA in 1998. He worked as an investment banker and business executive, and co-founded the startup funding company IgniteIP, which received $20 million in initial funding from investors. He later founded and served as CEO of the industrial process software company CPLANE. Joel Peterson, former chairman of JetBlue and a friend of Don Williams, gave Williams $2 million to invest in CPLANE.

In 2008, Williams and his wife purchased a 67 acre farm in Sennett, New York. The farm is focused on bees, lavender, and truffles. Despite the difficulty of growing truffles and the fact that the Williamses are the first to attempt to grow truffles so far north in New York State, they began producing truffles in 2019, and the farm has been visited by mycologists.

2022
On January 14, 2022, incumbent U.S. Representative John Katko announced that he would not seek reelection in 2022, creating a vacancy. The contentious 2022 redistricting combined much of Katko's district with portions of the previous district 22, then represented by Claudia Tenney, whose district was divided into several new districts. Tenney successfully ran in the new 24th district. Williams' home in Sennett lay in the 24th, two miles outside of the border of the 22nd; he chose to run in the 22nd, in part, to avoid a primary against Tenney. There is no legal requirement that a representative live within the district he represents, although the fact that he did not became a point of criticism.

Williams had begun thinking about running for office during the COVID-19 pandemic, and began his campaign after Katko announced his retirement. In the primary he campaigned as a supporter of Trump and his America First agenda, a marked change from Katko, who had voted in favor of the second impeachment of Donald Trump. Williams was critical of Katko's bipartisanship, calling it "politics as usual" and Katko a RINO. Katko, while supporting other local Republicans, remained neutral in the primary. Katko supporters endorsed Steven Wells, a local party official who had lost to Tenney in the 2016 primary, and who was seen as the party's favorite. Wells was endorsed by House Republican Conference chair Elise Stefanik, while Williams was endorsed by the Conservative Party of New York. Campaign ads by the Republican Congressional Leadership Fund during the primary criticized Williams for living on a truffle farm, using the expensive gourmet ingredient to portray him as an out-of-touch elitist. Wells avoided debates and local media interviews, which may have contributed to his defeat. Williams' victory over Wells was described as an upset by some news sources.

Williams faced Democratic nominee Francis Conole, also a U.S. Navy veteran, in the general election. The race gained national attention. Politico and The New York Times both noted the race as particularly competitive. National PACs ran ads, including more ads drawing attention to truffles, from the Democratic House Majority PAC this time. Republican minority whip Steve Scalise visited Syracuse to fundraise for Williams, and Stefanik gave Williams her endorsement, while Katko continued to not endorse Williams. Debates between Williams and Conole were contentious, with both accusing the other of misrepresenting themselves and their opponent. Conole said that Williams did not know Central New York and that his self-descriptions as a "political outsider" were bogus. Williams said that Conole's 20-year military career left him ill-equipped to handle issues of the economy and private business. In the general election, Williams defeated Conole by a margin of 1.5%.

2024
On August 22, 2023, Williams announced that he was running for a second term in 2024. In February 2024, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson was a guest at a $1,000-ticket fundraiser for Williams held at a country club in New Hartford.

Due to the 2024 redistricting, Williams' home in Sennett is now part of the 22nd district.

Tenure
He was one of four Republican representatives from New York who on January 11, 2023 called for George Santos to resign in light of false biographical statements that Santos had made. On December 1, he voted yes on the successful vote to expel Santos from the House.

On September 12, 2023, when House speaker Kevin McCarthy announced an impeachment inquiry against Joe Biden, Williams said he supported the inquiry.

An analysis by LegiStorm found that Williams's office had an unusually high rate of staff turnover, ranking as the 3rd highest rate in the House. At a 2023 Christmas party in Washington, a verbal confrontation between Williams and Michael Gordon, his former chief of staff and campaign manager, was recorded by another former staffer. Williams said that Sweeney and Gordon had threatened to expose personal details about his daughter.

Committee assignments
For the 118th Congress:
 * Committee on Education and the Workforce
 * Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education
 * Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Development
 * Committee on Science, Space, and Technology
 * Subcommittee on Energy (Chair)
 * Subcommittee on Research and Technology
 * Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
 * Subcommittee on Highways and Transit
 * Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials (Vice Chair)
 * Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment

Political views
In his 2022 campaign, Williams highlighted his "sharp conservative views." At a candidate forum, he named "socialist ideology" the number one threat to the United States. Williams, who homeschooled his children, is an advocate for school vouchers. Williams said he would oppose any effort in Congress to restrict or remove access to firearms, including red flag laws and bans of assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. He has said he would support stronger background checks for gun purchases. His campaign statements expressed support for voter identification requirements, and for building a wall on the Mexican border. At an open house shortly after inauguration, he said his concerns included energy policy and government spending.

Williams voted for Donald Trump in the 2016 and 2020 U.S. presidential elections. He believes the 2020 presidential election raised questions about state election laws, although he also stated that President Joe Biden was elected legitimately. He compared the January 6th hearings to the Moscow trials, and denounced Trump's indictment by a Manhattan grand jury in March 2023.

In his 2022 campaign, Williams said "each state, not the federal government, should decide what restrictions, if any, to place on abortion." He opposes abortion and believes it should be banned with exceptions in the case of rape, incest or to save the life of the mother.

Personal life
Williams met his wife, Stephanie, at a Bible study group in Orlando, Florida, while in the U.S. Navy. They married in 1992 and have two children. They began homeschooling their children after a conflict with a teacher over religion while their daughter was in the second grade.

In addition to Florida, Texas, and upstate New York, Williams also lived in Seattle, New York City, and Silicon Valley. In 2010 the Williams family built a home on their farm in Sennett and settled there permanently in 2019.

Williams's father Don is politically active in Dallas, particularly in social equality and racial justice. In 1995 he founded the Foundation for Community Empowerment, which focuses on urban revitalization in South Dallas. After the George Floyd protests of 2020, Don Williams and other members of the Dallas business elite developed an eight-point action plan that included raising the minimum wage, banning police use of chokeholds, and expanding Medicaid in Texas. Williams has said that he disagrees with his father politically but appreciates what he has done for Dallas's poor.