William J. McCoy (August 14, 1942 – November 12, 2019) was an American farmer and Democratic politician from Rienzi, Mississippi. He was the Speaker of the House of Representatives of the State of Mississippi. Background McCoy was born August 14, 1942 in Booneville, attended Northeast Mississippi Junior College, and graduated from Mississippi State University. He has worked as a vocational agriculture teacher and as a loan officer for the Farmers Home Administration, as well as a school auditor for the Mississippi State Department of Audit. He also farmed. House of Representatives McCoy became a member of the House in 1980, and was elected Speaker in 2004. In 2008, he faced (and beat) a challenge by conservative fellow Democrat, later Republican Jeff Smith of Columbus, who was supported by the Republicans in the House and by Republican governor Haley Barbour. On May 25, 2011, McCoy announced that he would not seek re-election to the State House. Personal life McCoy married Edith Leatherwood. He was a Baptist, Freemason, and a member of the Farm Bureau. He served as a member of the Board of Trustees of Northeast Mississippi Community College. He died on November 12, 2019 at the North Mississippi Medical Center in Tupelo, Mississippi. He was 77 years old. Sources Home page Project VoteSmart: "Representative William J. 'Billy' McCoy (MS)" References 1942 births 2019 deaths Farmers from Mississippi Baptists from Mississippi Mississippi State University alumni People from Alcorn County, Mississippi People from Booneville, Mississippi Speakers of the Mississippi House of Representatives Democratic Party members of the Mississippi House of Representatives 20th-century American politicians 21st-century American politicians 20th-century Baptists