William C. Cramer

William Cato "Bill" Cramer, Sr.
U.S. Representative William C. Cramer in 1964
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 1st district
In office January 3, 1955 – January 3, 1963
Preceded by	Courtney W. Campbell
Succeeded by	Robert L. F. Sikes
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 12th district
In office January 3, 1963 – January 3, 1967
Preceded by	New district
Succeeded by	Dante Fascell
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 8th district
In office January 3, 1967 – January 3, 1971
Preceded by	Donald R. Matthews
Succeeded by	Charles William "Bill" Young
State Representative from Pinellas County, Florida
In office 1951–1953
County attorney for Pinellas County
In office 1953–1954
Personal details
Born	(1922-08-04)August 4, 1922 Denver, Colorado, U.S.
Died	October 18, 2003(2003-10-18) (aged 81) South Pasadena Pinellas County, Florida
Cause of death	Heart attack
Resting place	Woodlawn Memory Gardens in St. Petersburg, Florida
Political party	Republican GOP U.S. Senate nominee, 1970
Spouse(s)	(1) Alice J. Cramer (divorced) (2) Sarah Ellen Bromelow Cramer (married ca. 1992–2003, his death)
Children	William C. Cramer, Jr. Mark C. Cramer Allyn Walters Cramer
Residence	St. Petersburg, Florida
Alma mater	St. Petersburg Junior College University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Harvard Law School
Profession	Attorney
Religion	United Methodist

Republican

(1) Alice J. Cramer (divorced)

William C. Cramer, Jr.
Mark C. Cramer

St. Petersburg Junior College University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

William Cato "Bill" Cramer Sr. (August 4, 1922 – October 18, 2003), was an attorney and Republican politician, elected in 1954 as a member of the United States House of Representatives from St. Petersburg, Florida. He was the first Florida Republican elected to Congress since 1880, shortly after the end of Reconstruction. He was re-elected, serving without interruption until 1970.

In Congress Cramer became a ranking member of the Roads subcommittee of the Committee on Public Works, and influenced national highway policy at a time of major expansion, ensuring that Interstates were kept toll-free. He gained extra funding to link Tampa and Miami, in a federal interstate project built in Florida.

He was instrumental in the revival of the Republican Party in Florida through the mid-20th century, taking advantage of the state's changing demographics and new Republican migrants from the North and Midwest, and attracting Cuban Americans and other minorities to the party. Beginning in 1964, Cramer represented the state for 20 years on the Republican National Committee and served as its counsel for six years.

The long absence of Republican officials from state office and weakened condition of the party was due to suppression of black and Republican voting in the 19th century, and the disenfranchisement of African Americans at the turn of the century, as they had constituted the majority of the Republican Party. Most were not able to vote for decades. They re-entered the political system by gaining the power to vote after passage of the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965.