Steve’s record as Mayor of Huntington is one of promises made and promises kept.

Born and raised in West Virginia Steve Williams built a successful career in banking and finance where he helped individuals, small businesses, and corporations achieve their goals. Elected Mayor in 2012, Steve inherited a city in sharp decline. Essential services were being cut, first responders faced layoffs, and the city’s bond rating was downgraded as it struggled to pay its bills. As Mayor, Steve took decisive action to overcome these challenges and in 2017 Huntington was selected the $3 million grand prize winner of the America’s Best Communities competition from among 350 cities nationwide. Working with community leaders the Williams administration has been able to leverage millions of dollars in additional grants and corporate investments to revitalize Huntington. And he’s done it all without raising taxes! As Governor, Steve will bring the same energy and drive to make sure the best West Virginia is yet to come.

During the height of the opioid addiction crisis, Huntington was hit hard, at one point registering 28 overdoses in a four hour period. Williams marshaled community leaders and city resources and got to work. He created quick response teams and employed innovative new treatment options to help overdose victims find ways to break the cycle of addiction. And that’s not all. Williams took the big drug distribution firms to court – the same firms who bragged about “turbocharging opioid sales” – and made them pay for the misery they created in his city. In a few short years Huntington went from being known as ground zero for the opioid crisis to being known as “the city of solutions” and a national model for how to deal with the drug epidemic.

When Steve took office, much of downtown consisted of boarded-up office space and city streets and neighborhoods were suffering under years of neglect. Once again, Steve got to work and put together a redevelopment plan that was selected as the grand prize winner in a nationwide competition. Steve used that plan and the $3 million grant money that came with it, to leverage nearly half a billion dollars in public and private investments that are transforming Huntington. Unemployment and crime are down, new businesses are opening up, and the city’s decaying sewer and stormwater systems are receiving a $200 million upgrade. The city’s bond rating has been restored to A status, and Huntington has the largest rainy day fund in its history.

Mayor Williams has said, “If we can do all this in Huntington, we can do it in the rest of West Virginia. I want to use the lessons I’ve learned as Mayor, as an investment banker, as city manager, and as a member of the House of Delegates, to build West Virginia into the kind of state we’re all proud to call home. I want West Virginia to be a model for what’s possible when people of good will work together. As your Governor, and with your help, I know that West Virginia’s best days are still ahead of us.

Steve is married to the love of his life, Mary Poindexter Williams. He has two stepdaughters, Nikki Reed and Laura Urban of whom he is immensely proud. Steve has a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Marshall University where he played football for the Young Thundering Herd, and a Masters of Public Administration from West Virginia University.