Hubert Leon "Bill" Richardson (December 28, 1927 – January 13, 2020) was an American

gun rights The right to keep and bear arms (often referred to as the right to bear arms) is a legal right for people to possess weapons (arms) for the preservation of life, liberty, and property. The purpose of gun rights is for self-defense, as well as ...

activist and former politician who founded

Gun Owners of America Gun Owners of America (GOA) is a gun rights organization in the United States. It makes efforts to differentiate itself from the larger National Rifle Association (NRA) and has publicly criticized the NRA on multiple occasions for what it consid ...

(GOA) in 1976 and served as a

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

state senator A state senator is a member of a State legislature (United States), state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. History There are typically fewer state senators than there ...

from 1966 to 1989.

Early life and education

Richardson was born in

Terre Haute, Indiana Terre Haute ( ) is a city in Vigo County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 58,389 and Terre Haute metropolitan area, its metropolitan area had a populati ...

, in 1927 and served in the United States Navy in World War II. He attended

Olympic College Olympic College is a public community college in Bremerton, Washington. It opened as Olympic Junior College on September 5, 1946. Olympic College serves Kitsap and Mason counties in Washington. The college's service area contains two major n ...

and the Cornish Conservatory, both in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

Career

Richardson's political career began as a member of the

John Birch Society The John Birch Society (JBS) is an American right-wing political advocacy group. Founded in 1958, it is anti-communist, supports social conservatism, and is associated with ultraconservative, radical right, far-right, right-wing populist, and ...

. He was elected to the

California State Senate The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature (the lower house being the California State Assembly). The state senate convenes, along with the state assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. ...

in 1966. During his tenure in the State Senate, Richardson served as the Republican Caucus Chair for several of these years. He was an unsuccessful Republican candidate for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

in 1974, having been defeated by incumbent

Alan Cranston Alan MacGregor Cranston (June 19, 1914 – December 31, 2000) was an American politician and journalist who served as a United States Senate, United States Senator from California from 1969 to 1993, and as President of the Citizens for Global S ...

. He ran for Congress in 1962, and again in 1992, losing to

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Vic Fazio. Richardson was credited with electing seven members of the California senate between 1978 and 1980. He led a group of organizations, including Gun Owners of America, that spent up to $1 million to elect conservative candidates. Richardson was the author of ''Confrontational Politics,'' a book that has served as a guide for

right-wing Right-wing politics is the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position based on natural law, economics, authority, property ...

political figures, activists, and organizations.

Personal life

He died on January 13, 2020, at the age of 92.

Bibliography

* ''Slightly to the Right''. Whittier, California: Constructive Action, 1965. * ''What Makes You Think We Read the Bills?'' Ottawa, Illinois: Caroline House, 1978. * ''The Devil's Eye''. Dallas: Word, 1995. * ''The Shadows of Crazy Mountain''. Dallas: Word, 1996. * ''Split Ticket''. Dallas: Word, 1996. * ''Confrontational Politics''. Ventura, California: Nordskog, 2010.

References

External links

GOA biography

Join California H. L. Richardson
1927 births 2020 deaths American gun rights activists Republican Party California state senators Cornish College of the Arts alumni Politicians from Terre Haute, Indiana Military personnel from Indiana United States Navy personnel of World War II Activists from California Candidates in the 1974 United States elections Candidates in the 1992 United States elections John Birch Society members 20th-century members of the California State Legislature {{California-CASenate-stub 20th-century American far-right politicians