Lily Tang Williams

{{Infobox officeholder

| name = Lily Tang Williams

| image = Lily Tang Williams, 2016 (cropped).jpg

| caption = Tang Williams in 2016

| office1 = Chair of the Colorado Libertarian Party

| term_start1 = April 26, 2015

| term_end1 = January 11, 2016

| predecessor1 = Jeff Orrok

| successor1 = Nathan Grabau

| birth_name = Táng Bǎihé

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1964|7|30}}

| birth_place = Chengdu, Sichuan, China

| education = Fudan University (LLB)
University of Texas at Austin (MSW)

| spouse = {{marriage|John Williams|1990}}

| children = 3

| citizenship = United States
China (until 1994)

| party = Republican (1995–2008; 2019–present)

| otherparty = Libertarian (2008–2019)

| module = {{Infobox Chinese|child=yes|c=唐百合|p=Táng Bǎihé}}

}}

Lily Tang Williams (born July 30, 1964) is an American activist and businesswoman who chaired the Colorado Libertarian Party from 2015 to 2016. She unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in New Hampshire's 2nd congressional district as a Republican in 2022 and 2024, losing the Republican primary in 2022 and then winning the Republican primary but losing the general election to Democratic nominee Maggie Goodlander in 2024. She was also the Libertarian nominee for the U.S. Senate in Colorado in 2016 and unsuccessfully ran for the Colorado House of Representatives as a Libertarian in 2014.

Early life and education

Lily Tang Williams was born on July 30, 1964, in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province in southwestern China.{{Cite web |last=Sexton |first=Adam |date=2024-09-11 |title=Lily Tang Williams, R, 2024 candidate for 2nd Congressional District seat in New Hampshire |url=https://www.wmur.com/article/lily-tang-williams-new-hampshire-2024/61892916 |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=WMUR |language=en}} Born to illiterate working-class parents, she grew up under the rule of Mao Zedong and her early childhood coincided with the Cultural Revolution, which lasted until Mao's death in 1976. She grew up in poverty but excelled in school, graduating at the top of her high school class and placing near the top of China's national exams.

After high school, Tang studied law at Fudan University in Shanghai. While in college, she met a foreign exchange student from the United States who showed her a pocket version of the United States Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, sparking her interest in emigrating to the United States.{{Cite web |last=Williams |first=Lily Tang |date=2023-09-15 |title=TANG WILLIAMS: A Pocket-Sized U.S. Constitution Freed Me from Enslavement |url=https://nhjournal.com/tang-williams-a-pocket-sized-u-s-constitution-freed-me-from-enslavement/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=NH Journal |language=en-US}} She received a bachelor's degree in 1985 and subsequently joined the law school faculty at Fudan University and practiced corporate law while China began rebuilding its economy. She came to the United States in 1988 to study at the University of Texas at Austin, and was subsequently granted asylum.{{cite web |title=Lily Tang Williams |url=https://victimsofcommunism.org/witness/lily-tang-williams/ |work=Victims of Communism Memorial Project}} In 1991, she earned a Master of Science in Social Work from the University of Texas at Austin.{{Cite web |title=Vote Smart {{!}} Facts For All |url=https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/155083/lily-williams |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=Vote Smart}} She became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1994.

Business career

Williams was a research assistant at the University of Texas at Austin and got a minimum-wage job at a telemarketing company to improve her English skills.{{Cite web |last=Gazette |first=TIFFANY DITTO The |date=2016-10-24 |title=Lily Tang Williams' U.S. Senate run is about pursuing the American dream |url=https://gazette.com/government/lily-tang-williams-u-s-senate-run-is-about-pursuing-the-american-dream/article_31d3f95f-11a3-5b92-8c05-26d4d40c574a.html |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=Colorado Springs Gazette |language=en}} After finishing graduate school, she became a social worker in Laramie, Wyoming, working with troubled youth as well as seniors in Wyoming home health care business. In the late 1990s, she moved to Hong Kong with her family as an expatriate to work as a corporate executive for PREL, Inc., helping to manage Walmart's operations in China.{{Cite web |date=2015-02-19 |title=About |url=http://www.lily4liberty.com/about-1.html |access-date=2024-09-14 |archive-date=2015-02-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150219031847/http://www.lily4liberty.com/about-1.html |url-status=bot: unknown }} In 1999, she moved to Parker, Colorado, to work for a telecommunications company.{{Cite web |last=Staff |date=2015-05-06 |title=Lily Tang Williams elected chairwoman of the Libertarian Party of Colorado |url=https://coloradocommunitymedia.com/2015/05/06/lily-tang-williams-elected-chairwoman-of-the-libertarian-party-of-colorado/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=Colorado Community Media |language=en-US}} When the company went bankrupt in 2000, Williams started a consulting firm to help American companies conduct business in China and provide expert witness services on China-related matters. In 2009 she and her husband launched a rental property investment and management company that operates in New Hampshire, Nevada, Florida, and Colorado. She is also a public speaker for the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation. She travels around the United States to give speeches about her experiences growing up in communist China.{{Cite web |title=Lily Tang Williams |url=https://victimsofcommunism.org/speaker/lily-tang-williams/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation |language=en}}

Political career

= Colorado politics =

Upon becoming a U.S. citizen in 1995, Williams registered as a Republican after being drawn to the party's positions on limited government. However, she became disillusioned with the party due to surveillance provisions in the Patriot Act and the passage of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act and ultimately left the Republican Party to become a Libertarian in 2008.{{cite news |last1=Matherly |first1=Charlotte |title='I fear the country I love is becoming the country I left' - For Lily Tang Williams, her politics are rooted in lessons from China|url=https://www.concordmonitor.com/Meet-NH-candidate-for-Congress-Lily-Tang-Williams-57058624 |access-date=24 September 2024 |work=Concord Monitor |date=23 September 2024}}

Williams served on the board of her neighborhood's homeowner association from 2000 to 2002 and chaired the board of her children's charter school in Douglas County from 2005 to 2008. She first became involved in politics during an internship for Colorado State Representative Brad Young in 2002. She was motivated to become a political activist following the election of Barack Obama. Initially speaking out against Common Core and gun control laws, she testified against new state-level gun control laws at the Colorado State Capitol in 2013.{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=Eagle Times |date=2024-08-22 |title=Lily Tang Williams fights for the American Dream |url=https://eagletimes.com/2024/08/22/lily-tang-williams-fights-for-the-american-dream/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=eagletimes.com {{!}} Serving the Twin State Valley |language=en-US}}

Williams was a regional coordinator for former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson's 2012 presidential campaign and supported Johnson's candidacy in 2016 after he won the Libertarian nomination. Williams and her husband were both national delegates to the Libertarian National Convention in 2012 and 2016.{{Cite web |last=Camera |first=Daily |date=2016-10-15 |title=Lily Tang Williams: U.S. Senate |url=https://www.dailycamera.com/2016/10/15/lily-tang-williams-us-senate/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=Boulder Daily Camera |language=en-US}} She first ran for office in 2014 as the Libertarian candidate for the Colorado House of Representatives in House District 44, winning 6.4% of the vote.{{Cite web |title=2014 General Election Results |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2014/general/representatives.html#44 |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=www.sos.state.co.us}}

On April 26, 2015, Williams was elected chair of the Colorado Libertarian Party. She announced on January 12, 2016, that she would run for the United States Senate as a Libertarian.{{cite news |last1=Craig |first1=Andy |title=Lily Tang Williams announces candidacy for Colorado U.S. Senate seat as a Libertarian |url=https://independentpoliticalreport.com/2016/01/lily-tang-williams-announces-candidacy-for-colorado-u-s-senate-seat-as-a-libertarian/ |access-date=24 September 2024 |work=Independent Political Report |date=January 12, 2016}}

== 2016 U.S. Senate campaign ==

On January 12, 2016, after resigning as chair of the Colorado Libertarian Party, Williams announced her candidacy for the United States Senate in the 2016 election to unseat incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Michael Bennet. She participated in a general election debate against Bennet and Republican nominee Darryl Glenn, becoming the first third-party candidate in recent memory to participate in such a debate in Colorado.{{Cite web |date=2016-09-06 |title=In a first, Libertarian candidate in Colorado's U.S. Senate race qualifies for major debate |url=https://www.denverpost.com/2016/09/06/lily-tang-williams-libertarian-candidate-colorados-us-senate-debate/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=The Denver Post |language=en-US}} She won 3.6% of the vote in the general election, underperforming Johnson, who won 5.2% of the vote in Colorado on the same ballot,{{cite web | url=http://results.enr.clarityelections.com/CO/63746/184388/Web01/en/summary.html | title=Official Results November 8, 2016 General Election | publisher=Colorado Secretary of State | access-date=November 11, 2024}} but improving on the 2.6% Gaylon Kent won as a Libertarian in 2014.{{cite web | url=http://results.enr.clarityelections.com/CO/53335/148826/Web01/en/summary.html | title=Official Results November 4, 2014 General Election | publisher=Colorado Secretary of State | access-date=November 11, 2024}}

= New Hampshire politics =

Williams, previously elected as Supervisor of Checklists in her town of Weare, New Hampshire is a co-founder and chair of the New Hampshire Asian American Coalition and sits on the advisory board of U.S. Parents Involved in Education.{{Cite web |last=Williams |first=Latrice |title=Congressional candidate talks fleeing communism with Pinnacle students |url=https://www.shelbystar.com/story/news/2022/02/14/nh-republican-candidate-brings-story-fleeing-communism-pinnacle/6710119001/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=Shelby Star |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Education |first=US Parents Involved in |title=US Parents Involved in Education |url=https://uspie.org/advisory-board |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=US Parents Involved in Education |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=Byline: Ink Link |date=2021-03-21 |title=New Hampshire Asian American Coalition announces formation - Manchester Ink Link |url=https://manchester.inklink.news/new-hampshire-asian-american-coalition-announces-formation/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |language=en-US}} As a supporter of parental rights, Williams argues that parents have the right to refuse mask mandates and compulsory vaccines.{{Cite web |last=McCaughey |first=Caroline |date=2022-07-08 |title=Tang Williams Touts Personal Freedom, Parental Rights in NH-02 GOP Primary Bid |url=https://nhjournal.com/tang-williams-touts-personal-freedom-parental-rights-in-nh-02-gop-primary-bid/ |access-date=2024-09-24 |website=NH Journal |language=en-US}} During the COVID-19 pandemic, she founded a women's social group in Weare, New Hampshire, to connect local women during quarantine.{{Cite web |last=Tang Williams |first=Lily |date=April 21, 2024 |title=I founded a lady's social group "Weare Pink" 3 years ago in my town. It has grown to 109 members. If you live in Weare area, you are a woman interested in making friends & having fun, please join us on FB. There is time for work, time for family, there is time for fun. |url=https://twitter.com/Lily4Liberty/status/1782065908682240245 |access-date=September 13, 2024 |website=Twitter}} She endorsed Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election and has expressed questions about the results of the 2020 presidential election.{{Cite web |title=Press Releases |url=https://www.lilytangwilliams.com/congress/press-releases/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=Lily Tang Williams for Congress |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Leader |first=Kevin Landrigan/Union |date=2024-09-05 |title=Williams said she "still has questions" about 2020 election |url=https://www.unionleader.com/news/politics/state/2nd-district-gop-debate-gets-testy-over-2020-election/article_96a22200-6b2f-11ef-9c5f-53a1cf5221f3.html |access-date=2024-11-11 |website=New Hampshire Union Leader |language=en}}

== 2022 congressional campaign ==

{{Main|2022 United States House of Representatives elections in New Hampshire#District 2}}

Williams ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in New Hampshire's 2nd congressional district in the 2022 elections to unseat incumbent Democratic U.S. Representative Annie Kuster. She faced former Hillsborough County Treasurer Bob Burns and Keene Mayor George Hansel in the Republican primary. She was endorsed by the Tea Party Express, a national Tea Party-aligned political action committee that supports conservative candidates for state and federal office, including in New Hampshire.{{Cite web |date=2022-08-04 |title=ELECTION ALERT: Tea Party Express Endorses Lily Tang Williams for Congress in New Hampshire |url=https://teapartyexpress.org/11217/election-alert-tea-party-express-endorses-lily-tang-williams-for-congress-in-new-hampshire |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=Tea Party Express |language=en-US}} She placed third in the primary, winning 24.9% of the vote and losing to Burns, who went on to be defeated by Kuster in the general election.{{Cite news |date=2022-09-13 |title=New Hampshire Second Congressional District Primary Election Results |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/09/13/us/elections/results-new-hampshire-us-house-district-2.html |access-date=2024-09-14 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite news |date=2022-11-08 |title=New Hampshire Second Congressional District Election Results |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/11/08/us/elections/results-new-hampshire-us-house-district-2.html |access-date=2024-09-14 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}

== 2024 congressional campaign ==

{{Main|2024 United States House of Representatives elections in New Hampshire#District 2}}

After the 2022 midterms, Williams announced she would run again for the U.S. House of Representatives in New Hampshire's 2nd congressional district in 2024 to replace Kuster, who is retiring instead of seeking reelection.{{Cite news |last=Alfaro |first=Mariana |date=2024-03-27 |title=New Hampshire Democratic Rep. Ann Kuster to retire from Congress |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/03/27/annie-kuster-retiring-house/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |newspaper=Washington Post |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}} She faced Lincoln businessman Vikram Mansharamani and Hanover businessman Bill Hamlen in the Republican primary and defeated them and 10 other candidates with 35.8% of the vote.{{Cite news |date=2024-09-10 |title=New Hampshire 2nd Congressional District Primary Election Results |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/09/10/us/elections/results-new-hampshire-us-house-2-primary.html |access-date=2024-09-14 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}} As the Republican nominee in this district, Williams lost to Democratic nominee Maggie Goodlander, a former Biden White House advisor, in the general election 52.9%-47.0%.{{Cite web|title=Goodlander and Williams secure wins in NH's 2nd Congressional District race |url= https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-elections/new-hampshire-us-house-district-2-results|access-date=2024-12-07|website=NBC News |language=en}}

== 2026 congressional campaign ==

{{Main|2026 United States House of Representatives elections in New Hampshire#District 2}}

On April 9, 2025, Williams posted on X announcing her run again for the U.S. House of Representatives in New Hampshire's 2nd congressional district in 2026, potentially setting up a rematch against Representative Maggie Goodlander, who defeated her in 2024.

== Involvement with the Free State Project ==

In 2016, Williams visited New Hampshire for the first time and signed the Free State Project pledge to move to New Hampshire and "advance liberty." In 2019, after re-registering as a Republican, she and her husband moved to Weare, New Hampshire.{{Cite web |title=Seeking Freedom: From Communist China to the State of New Hampshire |url=https://issuu.com/mcleancommunications/docs/603_diversity_q1_2022_v2/s/14726896 |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=Issuu |language=en}} Though she is not an active member of the Free State Project, she spoke at the organization's Porcupine Freedom Festival as a congressional candidate in 2024.{{Cite web |date=2024-09-11 |title=Lily Tang Williams beats out 12 others in 2nd congressional district to face Maggie Goodlander in general election |url=https://www.concordmonitor.com/Lily-Tang-Williams-Maggie-Goodlander-Congressional-district-2-NH-CD2-56944971 |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=Concord Monitor |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Featured Speakers for PorcFest XXI {{!}} PorcFest |url=https://porcfest.com/about/speakers/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |language=en}}

Personal life

Williams (Táng Bǎihé) met her husband, John Williams, on the day she arrived in the United States in 1988. They married in 1990 and have three children together.{{Cite web |title=Lily Tang Williams For US Congress – NGCRC |url=http://northerngraftonrepublicans.org/lily-tang-williams-for-us-congress/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |language=en-US}} They live in Weare, New Hampshire.{{Cite web |last=Sexton |first=Adam |date=2024-09-11 |title=Lily Tang Williams, R, 2024 candidate for 2nd Congressional District seat in New Hampshire |url=https://www.wmur.com/article/lily-tang-williams-new-hampshire-2024/61892916 |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=WMUR |language=en}}