Former Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said only three opinions matter: The Chairman, Vice-Chairman, and the NY Fed President.

On March 1, the Wall Street Journal reported the White House Preparing to Nominate Richard Clarida as Fed’s No. 2 Official.

Today we learn, San Francisco Fed’s John Williams Is Front Runner to Serve as New York Fed President.

San Francisco Fed President John Williams is the leading candidate to become the next president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, one of the most influential positions within the U.S. central bank, according to people familiar with the matter.

Mr. Williams has been recommended by the New York Fed’s board for the position. If approved by the Washington-based Fed board of governors, Mr. Williams would succeed William Dudley, who plans to step down this summer.

The president of the New York Fed, one of 12 regional reserve banks, has a permanent vote on the central bank’s rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee and serves as its vice chair. The bank is a chief regulator of the some of the nation’s largest banks and serves as the Fed’s window onto Wall Street.

Mr. Williams succeeded Janet Yellen as the San Francisco Fed leader in 2011, after Ms. Yellen was tapped by President Barack Obama to serve as the Fed’s vice chairwoman. Mr. Williams previously served as the San Francisco Fed’s research director, reporting to Ms. Yellen.

Mr. Williams, 55 years old, joined the San Francisco Fed in 2002 and previously served as a senior economist for the Fed board in Washington. He joined the central bank in 1994 and has a Ph.D. in economics from Stanford University.

Diversity

Bloomberg offers this tidbit on diversity:

“While his resume includes many of the qualifications for the job, Williams’ possible shift to New York might draw criticism about the lack of gender and racial diversity in the upper ranks of the Fed.”