Manatee Supervisor of Elections: Charles Williams Jr.

Name: Charles N. Williams Jr.

Age: 57

Family: My wife is Joann Williams. We have a blended family of four and 11 grandchildren.

Bio: Manatee High School, class of 1981; Florida Baptist College, associate degree in theology; Emmaus Baptist College, bachelor's degree in theology. 1982-2000, management/boat builder at Donzi Marine, Chris Craft and Wellcraft Marine. 1995-2004, ministerial duty at Mt. Raymon Full Gospel Baptist Church. 2004-2019, founder and pastor of The King of Kings Baptist Church. April 2019-present, assistant pastor at St. Mary Missionary Baptists Church in Bradenton. August 2019-present, teacher aide at Manatee County School System. 1988-1990, volunteer for Palmetto Eagles Youth Football League. 1990-1996, volunteer for Palmetto Trojans Youth Football League. Dec. 17,2015 to April 28, 2016, served on the Manatee County Citizens Financial Structure Advisory Board and eight-plus years on the Board of Directors at Oasis Middle School.

Why are you running to be supervisor of elections?

I see a shortfall in the area of community outreach to all areas of our county with regard to motivating and encouraging all our citizenry to register and vote. I believe with my communication skills and pastoral background, I can achieve the objective of enhancing voter registration and voter turnout.

The Legislature governs what the Supervisors of Election can do. Nevertheless, if you had the power, what changes would you make to Florida’s current voting system?

Currently, the law requires that voting must take place in a government building. If it were in my power, I would change the law to allow the supervisor of elections to partner with local companies that have large enough facilities that could serve as a polling place for the convenience of the community at large.

One of the big issues of this election is the rise of universal mail-in ballots. What is your opinion of universal mail-in ballots — by which your office would mail a ballot to every registered voter in Manatee County? / Should Florida adopt such a system, or is the current absentee ballot system sufficient?

I believe that our current system is sufficient; we haven't found anything wrong with it. I will look for ways to improve it as time going on. The old adage is: "If it's not broken, don't fix it."

What is your position on voter identification? What do you think should be required of every voter to validate identification?

The acceptable ID would be: a valid driver's license or state-issued ID card. Currently, this is not required for mail-in ballots. Therefore, I would also accept proof of residency, such as an electric bill or a water bill with verification of signatures of record from their official voter registration form. This type of ID would require that they execute a "voter's certificate" as required on mail-in ballots. For out-of-state voters with dual residency, they would have to take an additional step to vote. They would also have to execute the voter's certificate, so they would know and understand the penalty for voting twice.

What is your position on Amendment 1, which would change the Florida Constitution from “Every citizen of the United States … shall be an elector” to “Only a citizen of the United States … shall be an elector”? Why do you support or not support it?

I believe that voting is a basic American right that should always be protected and not left to the current political winds or made unnecessarily difficult. Many of our residents have green cards, work and pay taxes, serve in the military, etc. Therefore, why should they not be allowed to vote? They should not be treated like "second class citizens." I am opposed to Amendment 1.