Jeffrey D. Johnson (born April 10, 1958) is an American politician and attorney who served as a member of

Cleveland City Council Cleveland City Council is the legislature, legislative branch of Local government in the United States, government for the Cleveland, City of Cleveland, Ohio. Its chambers are located at Cleveland City Hall at 601 Lakeside Avenue, across the str ...

for Ward 10 from 2014 to 2018. Johnson served as councilman for Ward 8 from 1984 to 1990 and as a member of the

Ohio Senate The Ohio Senate is the upper house of the Ohio General Assembly. The State Senate, which meets in the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, first convened in 1803. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered every two years such that half of t ...

from 1990 to 1998.

Early life and education

Johnson was raised in the Collinwood neighborhood and graduated from Collinwood High School. He holds a bachelor's degree in communications from

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a Public university, public research university in Kent, Ohio, United States. The university includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio located in Kent State University at Ashtabula, Ashtabula, Kent State ...

and a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

and a master's degree in political science from

Case Western Reserve University Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a Private university, private research university in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It was established in 1967 by a merger between Western Reserve University and the Case Institute of Technology. Case ...

Career

Johnson was seen as a rising star in the Democratic Party in the 1990s, and announced his candidate to replace retiring representative

Louis Stokes Louis Stokes (February 23, 1925 – August 18, 2015) was an American attorney, civil rights pioneer and politician. He served 15 terms in the United States House of Representatives – representing the east side of Cleveland – and was the firs ...

in the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

in 1998. A few weeks after his announcement, however, he was indicted on federal charges of extortion. FBI agents said between 1994 and 1996 Johnson accepted $17,000 in campaign contributions and personal loans in exchange for using his influence to land state licenses for grocers. He was convicted in November 1998 and began his sentence in 2000 after losing an appeal, serving 15 months in prison and a

halfway house A halfway house is a type of prison or institute intended to teach (or reteach) the necessary skills for people to re-integrate into society and better support and care for themselves. Halfway houses are typically either state sponsored for those ...

Cleveland City Council

In 1984, Johnson was appointed as Councilman for Ward 8 as then-councilman Michael White was appointed to the Ohio State Senate. Johnson was then elected as the Ward 8 Councilman 90 days later and re-elected in 1985 and 1989. Johnson was co-sponsor of the city's first Fair Housing Law and led the successful effort to establish Cleveland's Sex Crime and Child Abuse Investigative Unit in the Cleveland Police Department. During his tenure, the Ward 8 Glenville neighborhood received new economic and housing development projects including the Glenville Plaza, Eastside Market and Abyssinia Towers, a senior citizen apartment complex. Johnson was recognized and honored for his public service by local community groups.

Ohio Senate

Johnson became an Ohio State Senator In January 1990 when he was appointed to the Senate following Senator White's election win for Mayor of Cleveland. During his nine years as Senator, Johnson sponsored a law creating the Ohio Infant Health Commission, and co-sponsored diverse legislation covering major issues including workplace discrimination, education reform, economic development, criminal justice reform and more. He led the successful fight to keep Central State University open in 1997 while serving as President of the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus (OLBC). In 1998, Johnson was convicted of three counts of violating the

Hobbs Act The Hobbs Act, codified at , is a United States federal law enacted in 1946 that prohibits actual or attempted robbery or extortion that affects interstate or foreign commerce, as well as conspiracies to do so. The Act is named for United Stat ...

, the federal law prohibiting public officials from using their office to extort money. After serving 9 months, he completed a 4-month halfway house program in 2001. in 2002, Johnson was hired as an assistant to then Mayor Jane Campbell. He was promoted to the Mayor's Cabinet a year later as Director of the Department of Community Relations. During his years as director, Johnson was responsible for overseeing the city's police and community outreach initiative, mediation of neighborhood disputes, and implementation of the city's Fair Housing program. He was recognized by community groups for his leadership. After Mayor Campbell's election loss in 2005, Johnson started his company, Prime Strategy Group, a political consultant firm. In 2008, after citing his successful post-conviction career, he received from the

Cuyahoga County Cuyahoga County ( or , see ) is a large urban county located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. The county seat and most populous city is Cleveland. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,264,817, making it the second ...

Court of Common Pleas an expungement that sealed his record. In 2008, the Ohio Supreme Court unanimously reinstated his law license.

Return to Cleveland City Council

Johnson became a candidate for the Cleveland Ward 8 City Council position in 2009, and was elected in November of that year. In 2013, he won again after being forced to seek reelection in a new redistricted Ward 10 after his previous ward was removed.

2017 Cleveland mayoral campaign

The Plain Dealer ''The Plain Dealer'' is the major newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio; it is a major national newspaper. In the fall of 2019, it ranked 23rd in U.S. newspaper circulation, a significant drop since March 2013, when its circulation ranked 17th daily an ...

'' reported on January 16, 2017, that Johnson, in an interview, planned to run for

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

. He made a formal announcement the next day. In the

Nonpartisan blanket primary A nonpartisan primary, top-two primary, or jungle primary is a primary election in which all candidates for the same elected office run against each other at once, regardless of political party. This distinguishes them from partisan primaries, w ...

, Johnson placed third out of 11 candidates. After losing the election, Johnson became the Chief Housing Specialist at the Cleveland Housing Court.

2021 Ohio's 11th congressional district special election

After Marcia Fudge was selected as Biden's nomination for

Secretary of Housing and Urban Development The United States secretary of housing and urban development is the head of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, a member of the Cabinet of the United States, and thirteenth in the presidential line of succession. The ...

, Johnson announced his candidacy for the

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

to succeed her.

Personal life

Johnson married his wife, Felicia, in 2015. He is a step-father to her two daughters from a previous marriage. In 2017, Felicia and her two daughters moved to the East Side of

. On January 12, 2021, a dissolution of the marriage was granted by Judge Diane M. Palos of the Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court.

References

External links

Campaign website
, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Jeff Living people Cleveland City Council members Democratic Party Ohio state senators African-American state legislators in Ohio Politicians convicted of extortion under color of official right Ohio politicians convicted of crimes Kent State University alumni Case Western Reserve University alumni 1958 births 21st-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American politicians Candidates in the 2021 United States elections 21st-century members of the Ohio General Assembly