Williams, Anthony, 1951-

Anthony Allen Williams (born July 28, 1951) is an American politician who was the fifth mayor of the District of Columbia for two terms from 1999 to 2007. His tenure as mayor has been appraised very highly by the policy community and historians, with MSNBC branding him "one of the best and most successful mayors in US history."

Born Anthony Stephen Eggleton in Los Angeles County, California, he graduated from Loyola High School in Los Angeles before attending Santa Clara University and enrolling in the United States Air Force. After being given an honorable discharge, Williams enrolled at Yale University, graduating in 1982. Williams first ran for office while a student at Yale in 1979 when he was elected to the New Haven, Connecticut, Board of Aldermen. He served until 1982 and during that time served as President Pro-Tempore. In 1987, he earned a J.D. from Harvard Law School and a Master of Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. After graduating, Williams served as the Deputy State Comptroller of Connecticut. Williams also served as Executive Director of the Community Development Agency in St. Louis, Missouri; Assistant Director of the Boston (MA) Redevelopment Authority; and adjunct professor at Columbia University.

Williams first rose to prominence in Washington, D.C., as the District of Columbia's Chief Financial Officer (CFO) during the final term of Mayor Marion Barry, who nominated Williams to the position in September 1995. By that time, however, Washington was in the midst of a fiscal crisis of such proportion that Congress had established a financial control board charged with oversight and management of the District's finances. Williams began steering D.C.'s finances toward financial recovery, moving from a $355 million deficit at the end of 1995 to a $185 million surplus in the city's fiscal year 1997. When Barry declined to seek a fifth term as mayor in the spring of 1998, Williams entered the race to succeed him, resigning as CFO to campaign. Williams instantly assumed frontrunner status in the race, and in September won the D.C. Democratic primary with 50% of the vote in a six-person race, then won the November 3 general election by a 2–1 margin despite not having held any elected office since 1982. During his two terms as Mayor, he was widely credited with leading the comeback of Washington D.C., restoring the finances of the city and improving the performance of government agencies, all while lowering taxes and investing in infrastructure and human services.

Williams currently serves as CEO and Executive Director of the Federal City Council, an organization that focuses the creative and administrative talents of Washington’s business and professional leaders on major problems and opportunities facing the District, and is a member of the Bipartisan Policy Center's board of directors.