William Timmons
American politician (born 1984)
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William Richardson Timmons IV (born April 30, 1984) is an American politician, prosecutor, and Air Force officer serving as the U.S. representative for South Carolina's 4th congressional district since 2019. His district is in the heart of the Upstate and includes Greenville, Spartanburg, and most of their suburbs. Previosly, Timmons served as a South Carolina state senator from 2016 to 2018.[1][2] He is a member of the Republican Party.
April 30, 1984
William Timmons | |
|---|---|
| |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from South Carolina's 4th district | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Trey Gowdy |
| Member of the South Carolina Senate from the 6th district | |
| In office November 14, 2016 – November 9, 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Mike Fair |
| Succeeded by | Dwight Loftis |
| Personal details | |
| Born | William Richardson Timmons IV April 30, 1984 |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Sarah Anderson
(m. 2019; div. 2023) |
| Education | George Washington University (BA) University of South Carolina (MA, JD) New York University (MS) |
| Website | House website Campaign website |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | United States Air Force |
| Years of service | 2018–present (Guard) |
| Rank | Captain |
| Unit | Air Force Judge Advocate General's Corps |
Timmons is a member of the House Oversight Committee's 2025 Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency, to support the associated Department of Government Efficiency.[3]
Early life and education
In high school at Christ Church Episcopal School, Timmons was the 2001 South Carolina Player of the Year in tennis and won an individual state title in 2002.[4]
A native of Greenville, Timmons attended George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs, where he earned a degree in international affairs and political science. While enrolled, Timmons played Division I tennis.[4] He received a partial scholarship all four years.[citation needed]
Timmons earned a Juris Doctor and a master's degree in international studies from the University of South Carolina.[5] He also earned a Master of Science degree in Cybersecurity Risk and Strategy from NYU.[6]
Early career
Timmons spent four years working for the 13th Circuit solicitor's office. In this role, he focused on serving victims of domestic violence and helped create a central court for all domestic violence cases in Greenville County.[7] As Assistant Solicitor, Timmons prosecuted a variety of offenses during his legal career, including domestic abuse, white-collar crime, and murder.[5]
In 2016, Timmons challenged longtime state senator Mike Fair in the Republican primary for a Greenville-area district. He finished first in the primary with 49.5% of the vote, fewer than 100 votes shy of winning the nomination outright.[8] He then defeated Fair in the runoff with 65% of the vote[9] and faced no major-party opposition in the general election.[10]
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
2018
Timmons was elected to replace retiring Republican incumbent Trey Gowdy in South Carolina's 4th congressional district. His campaign slogan was "Washington is broken."[11][12] On June 10, Timmons placed second in a 13-candidate primary–the real contest in this heavily Republican district–receiving 19.2% of the vote. On June 28, 2018, Timmons defeated former state senator Lee Bright in the runoff with 54.2% of the vote. He did not have to give up his state senate seat to run for Congress; South Carolina state senators serve four-year terms that run concurrently with presidential elections.
Timmons defeated Brandon Brown in the November general election with 59.5% of the vote.[13][14] He became one of the youngest U.S. representatives from South Carolina since 1972.[15]
2020
Timmons won renomination unopposed. He defeated Democratic nominee Kim Nelson in the general election with 61.6% of the vote.[16]
2022
- 50–60%
Timmons won renomination with 52.7% of the vote in a four-candidate Republican primary.[17]
Timmons won re-election unopposed. He was the only candidate on the general election ballot as his Democratic opponent dropped out in August.[18]
2024
- 50–60%
- 50–60%
Timmons won renomination 51.6%–48.4% against Adam Morgan, a state representative challenger from the right.[19] Morgans was endorsed by several conservative House Republicans as well as former South Carolina senator JimDeMint.[20] Timmons was endorsed by Donald Trump and House Republican leadership.[21]
Timmons was re-elected in the general election.[22]
2026
Timmons is running for re-election in 2026. In January 2026, he pledged to supporters that this would be his last re-election campaign before retiring in 2028.[23]
Tenure
Timmons was sworn into office on January 3, 2019, amid a government shutdown. He cosponsored legislation to require Congress to balance the budget, defund Planned Parenthood, support Gold Star Families, strengthen national defense, and promote school choice.[24]
Timmons serves on the Financial Services Committee, where he introduced legislation seeking to counter China's efforts to expand its 5G influence in countries receiving assistance from international financial institutions. He was elected by his classmates to represent the freshman class on the Republican Steering Committee.[25]
He introduced legislation proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to limit the number of consecutive terms that a member of Congress may serve (H.J.Res.86).[26]
Timmons supported President Donald Trump during his first impeachment, saying of the process, "It is very, very, very broken" (referring to his 2018 campaign slogan "Washington is broken"). He added that he thought the process would be fair in the Senate and called the opposition to impeachment "bipartisan."[27]
In December 2020, Timmons was one of 126 Republican members of the House of Representatives to sign an amicus brief in support of Texas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit filed at the United States Supreme Court contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which Joe Biden defeated[28] Trump. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lacked standing under Article III of the Constitution to challenge the results of an election held by another state.[29][30][31]
In January 2021, Timmons announced he would object to the certification of Biden as president.[32] When Congress reconvened after the storming of the United States Capitol, Timmons voted to object to the Electoral College results.[33]
In July 2024, Timmons questioned former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle at a House Oversight Committee hearing. His comments gained national attention as Cheatle resigned the next day following fiery questioning from congressional leaders.[34]
Committee assignments
Caucus memberships
Electoral history
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William Timmons | 206,916 | 59.73 | |
| Democratic | Kathryn Harvey | 128,976 | 37.23 | |
| Constitution | Mark Hackett | 9,779 | 2.82 | |
| N/A | Write-Ins | 743 | 0.21 | |
| Total votes | 346,414 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William Timmons | 36,533 | 51.6 | |
| Republican | Adam Morgan | 34,269 | 48.4 | |
| Total votes | 70,802 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William Timmons | 165,607 | 90.81 | |
| N/A | Write-Ins | 16,758 | 9.19 | |
| Total votes | 182,365 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William Timmons | 24,800 | 52.69 | |
| Republican | Mark Burns | 11,214 | 23.83 | |
| Republican | Michael Mike LaPierre | 8,029 | 17.06 | |
| Republican | George Abuzeid | 3,024 | 6.42 | |
| Total votes | 47,067 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William Timmons | 222,126 | 61.61 | ||
| Democratic | Kim Nelson | 133,023 | 36.89 | ||
| Constitution | Michael Chandler | 5,090 | 1.41 | ||
| N/A | Write-Ins | 311 | 0.09 | ||
| Margin of victory | 83,702 | 23.4 | |||
| Total votes | 360,550 | 100.0 | |||
| Republican hold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William Timmons | 145,321 | 59.57 | ||
| Democratic | Brandon Brown | 89,182 | 36.56 | ||
| American | Guy Furay | 9,203 | 3.77 | ||
| N/A | Write-Ins | 244 | 0.10 | ||
| Margin of victory | 56,139 | 23.01 | |||
| Total votes | 243,950 | 100.0 | |||
| Republican hold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William Timmons | 37,096 | 54.29 | |
| Republican | Lee Bright | 31,236 | 45.71 | |
| Total votes | 68,332 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Lee Bright | 16,742 | 24.95 | |
| Republican | William Timmons | 12,885 | 19.21 | |
| Republican | Dan Hamilton | 12,494 | 18.62 | |
| Republican | Josh Kimbrell | 7,465 | 11.13 | |
| Republican | James Epley | 5,386 | 8.03 | |
| Republican | Stephen Brown | 5,078 | 7.57 | |
| Republican | Shannon Pierce | 2,442 | 3.64 | |
| Republican | Mark Burns | 1,662 | 2.48 | |
| Republican | Claude Schmid | 1,414 | 2.11 | |
| Republican | Dan Albert | 510 | 0.76 | |
| Republican | John Marshall Mosser | 457 | 0.68 | |
| Republican | Justin David Sanders | 354 | 0.53 | |
| Republican | Barry Bell | 200 | 0.3 | |
| Total votes | 67,089 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William Timmons | 31,732 | 85.10 | |
| Constitution | Roy G. Magnuson | 5,556 | 14.90 | |
| Total votes | 37,288 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William Timmons | 6,244 | 65.30 | |
| Republican | Michael Fair | 3,318 | 34.70 | |
| Total votes | 9,562 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William Timmons | 4,880 | 49.51 | |
| Republican | Michael Fair | 3,578 | 36.30 | |
| Republican | Johnny Edwards | 1,399 | 14.19 | |
| Total votes | 9,857 | 100.0 | ||
Personal life
On July 17, 2019, Timmons married his wife, Sarah, on the balcony of the U.S. Capitol. Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina officiated.[40]
In response to posts on social media, Timmons acknowledged in July 2022 that he and his wife were working on their marriage after "going through tough times" in recent months. He said other allegations were false and mostly defamatory and asked for "privacy and prayers." He told his constituents "don't be distracted" and emphasized that his personal life does not affect his congressional service.[41]
Sarah filed for marital separation in mid-November 2022. In a statement provided to The Greenville News, the couple said they "will continue to remain close friends" and "respectfully ask for privacy".[42] Divorce proceedings can begin a year after separation per South Carolina law.[43] They were divorced by June 2024 and William said they are "still on very good terms".[44]
Timmons is a captain in the Air National Guard.[45] He has served since 2018 as a JAG officer assigned to the 263rd Army Air and Missile Defense Command.[46]
He is a Protestant.[47]
