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[[Image:Ronnie Thompson of GA.jpg|250px|right|thumb|Mayor and gubernatorial candidate Ronnie Thompson]]

 

| image=Ronnie Thompson of GA.jpg

| birth_date=July 21, 1934

| birth_place=Augusta, Georgia

| death_date=March 22, 2020 (aged 85)

| spouse=(1) Nita Thompson (married 1952-1972, divorced)<br>

(3) Gloria Milligan Thompson (married 1976)

[[University of Georgia]] (extension campus)<br>

'''Ronald John Thompson, Sr.''', known as '''Ronnie Thompson''' or ''''Machine Gun Ronnie' Thompson''' (July 21, 1934 &ndash; March 22, 2020), was a former [[Georgia]] [[Republican Party|Republican]] [[politician]] who was the first member of his party to have been elected [[mayor]] of Macon. Thompson served two controversial terms from 1967 to 1975. He was also a former [[gospel]] and [[Country music]] [[singer]] known for his highly [[conservative]] views on issues.

'''Ronald John Thompson, Sr.''', known as '''Ronnie Thompson''' or ''''Machine Gun Ronnie' Thompson''' (July 21, 1934 &ndash; March 22, 2020), was a former [[Georgia]] [[Republican Party|Republican]] [[politician]] who was the first member of his party to have been elected [[mayor]] of Macon. Thompson served two controversial terms from 1967 to 1975. He was also a former [[gospel]] and [[Country music]] [[singer]] known for his highly [[conservative]] views on issues.

Originally a [[Segregation|segregationist]], Thompson said that he had been reared to "believe in separation of the races."<ref>Roger Williams, "What Makes Ronnie Run", ''Atlanta Magazine,'' January 1971, p. 94.</ref> He also developed a resentment of the dominant wealth and the power elite. He once said that he could not fully evaluate the overall status of Macon because "I'm from the other side of the [[railroad]] tracks."<ref>Margaret Shannon, "Can a Gospel Singer Find Happiness as the First Republican Mayor of Macon?" ''Atlanta Journal and Constitution Magazine,'' May 25, 1969, p. 16.</ref>

Originally a [[Segregation|segregationist]], Thompson said that he had been reared to "believe in separation of the races."<ref>Roger Williams, "What Makes Ronnie Run", ''Atlanta Magazine,'' January 1971, p. 94.</ref> He also developed a resentment of the dominant wealth and the power elite. He once said that he could not fully evaluate the overall status of Macon because "I'm from the other side of the [[railroad]] tracks."<ref>Margaret Shannon, "Can a Gospel Singer Find Happiness as the First Republican Mayor of Macon?" ''Atlanta Journal and Constitution Magazine,'' May 25, 1969, p. 16.</ref>

Macon, situated near the geographic center of Georgia, was chartered in 1823 and named for the [[North Carolina]] statesman, [[Nathaniel Macon]]. The city contributed volunteers to the [[Texas Revolution]]. It was a temporary capital of Georgia after the sacking of Milledgeville in 1864 by the army of [[General]] [[William Tecumseh Sherman]].<ref>Ida Young, Julius Gholson, and Clara Nell Hargrove, ''History of Macon, Georgia'' (Macon: Lyon, Marshall, & Brooks, 1950), pp. 43, 48, 62, 88, 278</ref>

Situated near the geographic center of Georgia, Macon was chartered in 1823 and named for the [[North Carolina]] statesman, [[Nathaniel Macon]]. The city contributed volunteers to the [[Texas Revolution]]. It was a temporary capital of Georgia after the sacking of Milledgeville in 1864 by the army of [[General]] [[William Tecumseh Sherman]].<ref>Ida Young, Julius Gholson, and Clara Nell Hargrove, ''History of Macon, Georgia'' (Macon: Lyon, Marshall, & Brooks, 1950), pp. 43, 48, 62, 88, 278.</ref>

Friedman's transferred Remus Thompson to Macon in 1945. Ronnie, then eleven years old, went on to complete grammar school and graduated in 1951 from Lanier [[High School]]. He then attended [[Southern Baptist]]-affiliated Mercer University in Macon, the [[University of Georgia]] extension campus at Warner Robins, and the since disbanded [[Woodrow Wilson]] Law School in the capital city of [[Atlanta]],<ref>http://www.oglethorpe.edu/administrative/registrar/woodrow_wilson_college_of_law.asp</ref> but only for a quarter in each institution. Instead, he concentrated on his job at Friedman's, and at twenty-three, he became general manager for thirty-three stores in four southeastern states.<ref>Williams, "What Makes Ronnie Run," p. 94.</ref> Meanwhile, Thompson in 1952 married a young woman named Nita; they later had a daughter named Ronita and a son named Johnny. The couple separated in 1972, and a [[divorce]] followed in 1974.<ref>Moore Thesis, p. 4.</ref>

Friedman's transferred Remus Thompson to Macon in 1945. Ronnie, then eleven years old, went on to complete grammar school and graduated in 1951 from Lanier High School. He then attended [[Southern Baptist]]-affiliated Mercer University in Macon, the [[University of Georgia]] extension campus at Warner Robins, and the since disbanded [[Woodrow Wilson]] Law School in the capital city of [[Atlanta]],<ref>http://www.oglethorpe.edu/administrative/registrar/woodrow_wilson_college_of_law.asp</ref> but only for a quarter in each institution. Instead, he concentrated on his job at Friedman's, and at twenty-three, he became general manager for thirty-three stores in four southeastern states.<ref>Williams, "What Makes Ronnie Run," p. 94.</ref> Meanwhile, Thompson in 1952 married a young woman named Nita; they later had a daughter named Ronita and a son named Johnny. The couple separated in 1972, and a [[divorce]] followed in 1974.<ref>Moore Thesis, p. 4.</ref>

==Early political campaigns==

==Early political campaigns==