Fort Worth’s youngest city council member says he won’t seek re-election
More turnover is coming in Fort Worth’s May 2025 City Council elections.
Jared Williams, whose district includes southwest Fort Worth and the historic Como neighborhood, announced on Jan. 21 he will not seek a third term in office.
Williams cited a calling to “deepen my livelong pursuit of God’s love, mercy and justice,” through service to his faith community and his work fighting hunger as an executive at the Tarrant Area Food Bank.
“I’ve always said this isn’t Jared Williams’ seat, it’s all our seat in District 6,” Williams said in a statement emailed to the Star-Telegram. “I look forward to the next chapter of leadership to represent us and continue the progress we’ve made together.”
Williams joined the council in June 2021 after narrowly beating incumbent Jungus Jordan, who had represented the district since 2005.
Williams was one of six new members to join the council in 2021 after a slew of retirements and Chris Nettles’ defeat of five-term incumbent Kelly Allen Gray in District 8.
During his time on council, Williams prioritized including more community voices with a series of district roundtables to get feedback from constituents.
He championed expanding the city’s green spaces with land purchases in his southwest Fort Worth district to create Rock Creek Ranch Park.
He also worked to reduce youth gun violence as a champion of the One Second Collaborative — a partnership between the city, Tarrant County, and the United Way that supports community groups fighting youth gun violence.
“It’s not okay for anyone in this country to have to live in fear about whether a random bullet will hit them or their loved ones,” Williams said speaking at a July 2023 community meeting in the wake of the a pre-Fourth of July shooting in the Como neighborhood.
More recently, Williams has been an advocate for increasing the minimum wage for city employees to ensure they can afford to live in Fort Worth. During his tenure, the city increased its minimum hourly wage from around $10 per hour to $18 per hour in the 2025 budget.
That’s an increase of roughly $17,000 for a full-time employee making the city’s minimum hourly wage.
In a phone interview with the Star-Telegram, Williams cited his work to promote neighborhood commercial development and improve safety on major thoroughfares like Risinger Road and McCart Avenue as some of his proudest accomplishments.
Williams said whoever succeeds him will need to advocate for funds in the 2026 Bond to improve those major roads including connecting Bryant Irvin Road to Sycamore School Road west of the Chisholm Trail Parkway.
The area will also need a new fire station to serve residents in one of the fastest growing parts of the city, he said.
Williams advised his successor to continue the work of engaging neighborhoods on developments throughout the district.
On issues big and small, Williams said he never went wrong wrong engaging the community, and urged his successor to continue to be not just an advocate, but a partner with residents on issues affecting the district.
Williams, the council’s youngest member, joins Mayor Pro Tem Gyna Bivens, it’s longest serving member, in not seeking re-election.
As of 3 p.m. on Jan. 21, no other candidate has filed to run to represent the district.
The city’s filing period runs until 5 p.m. Feb. 14.
This story was originally published January 21, 2025 at 3:25 PM.
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