Rep. Mary Frances Williams
HD 37
A life-long resident of Cobb County, Rep. Mary Frances Williams serves HD 37, a Marietta district she FLIPped from red to blue in 2018, and the same geographic territory her late father, L. Howard “Red” Atherton, had served decades ago as a state representative and Mayor of Marietta.
Prior to her election in 2018, Rep. Williams spent 34 years as a public policy advocate for non-profits serving women, children and families. As an advocate, she helped restore millions of dollars to state school nutrition programs and successfully fought for passage of the Family Care Act, which allows Georgians to use sick leave to care for ailing family members.
In September 2023, she was honored by the Georgia Coalition Against Domestic Violence, which represents more than 50 domestic violence prevention organizations and programs throughout the state. She was honored during the “Together We Rise” Gala as a legislative champion for “exemplary efforts in the movement to end violence against women.”
Rep. Williams was being honored for her advocacy efforts even before she was elected, including the Annette Bowling Advocate of the Year Award in 2017 from Easter Seals of Southern Georgia, the Carolyn Wetzel Advocacy Award in 2009 from Health Mothers, Healthy Babies of Georgia, and the Maternal and Child Health Community Service Award in 2004 from the Georgia Public Health Association. She is a member of the Leadership Georgia Class of 1993 and the Leadership Cobb Class of 1989.
She is also a champion for the environment and voting rights. She has focused a great deal of attention on the issue of 30 million tons of coal ash stored in unlined pits near the the banks of the Chattahoochee River and has introduced a resolution which would mandate clean-up of these coal ash ponds. She also spoke out against the proposed strip mining adjacent to the Okefenokee Swamp and to stop toxic pollution from ethylene oxide at a factory near her district. “I will not stop until our families can drink clean water and breathe clean air,” she said.
As a member of the Governmental Affairs Committee, Mary Frances was a vocal opponent of legislation which has made it more difficult for many Georgians to vote and she fought a re-districting process that took decision making away from local leaders and allowed gerrymandering to take place.
House District 37 runs through the heart of Cobb County’s Marietta, including the communities of Fair Oaks, Cheatham Hill, parts of East Cobb, and downtown Marietta. Rep. Williams serves on the Governmental Affairs, Natural Resources & Environment, Retirement, and State Properties Committees.
She is a product of Georgia’s public schools, having attended Marietta City Schools and graduated from Marietta High School. Rep. Williams earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Earlham College in Indiana and a Masters of Social Work from the University of Georgia. She has two sons, Nick and Ben, and two grandchildren, twins Cooper and Madison. She is a lifelong member of the First United Methodist Church of Marietta.
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