Thelda Marie Williams (née Bender; June 30, 1941 – November 14, 2023) was an American politician who served as a city councilor in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

, from 1985. She was appointed multiple times as interim

Mayor of Phoenix In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well as ...

Biography

Williams, who had served on the Phoenix city council since 1989, was selected by the council to serve as an interim mayor of the city on March 29, 1994, following the resignation of former mayor Paul Johnson. Johnson, who was announcing his candidacy for the office of

Governor of Arizona A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

, was forced to resign his position due to state law prohibiting current officeholders from seeking another office except in the last year of their term. Coincidentally, Johnson had first been elevated to the office of mayor under similar circumstances when former mayor

Terry Goddard Samuel Pearson "Terry" Goddard III (born January 29, 1947) is an American attorney and politician who served as the mayor of Phoenix, Arizona from 1984 to 1990 and as the 24th attorney general of Arizona from 2003 to 2011. He is a member of the ...

had resigned his office to run for governor in 1990. Williams chose not to seek election to the office of mayor during the 1994 special election, and resumed her duties as councilwoman on November 3, 1994. Williams chose to challenge the new incumbent Skip Rimsza for the office during the regular elections in 1995 but was defeated; having not run for reelection in her council seat, she left the city council in 1996. Williams ran for a new term in 2007 and was elected to a four-year term on the Phoenix city council on September 11, 2007. Williams was elected to another four-year term in 2011. Williams was once again Phoenix's interim mayor following the resignation of

Greg Stanton Gregory John Stanton (born March 8, 1970) is an American lawyer and politician who is the U.S. representative from , serving since 2019. A Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, he was previously Mayor of Phoenix, mayor of Phoenix, Arizona, ...

, who resigned in order to run successfully for U.S. Congress, on May 29, 2018. She did not declare for the ensuing special election. Thelda Williams died from cancer on November 14, 2023, at the age of 82.Former Phoenix Mayor Thelda Williams dies
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References

External links

Official profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Thelda 1941 births 2023 deaths 20th-century mayors of places in Arizona 21st-century mayors of places in Arizona Mayors of Phoenix, Arizona Arizona city council members Women city councillors in Arizona Women mayors of places in Arizona 20th-century American women politicians 21st-century American women politicians