Rick Johnson is a former Canadian politician and musician. He was a Liberal member of the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA; ) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by the Legislative Assembly are given royal as ...

from 2009 to 2011 who represented the riding of Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock. He was elected in a

by-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 ...

on March 5, 2009, defeating Progressive Conservative leader

John Tory John Howard Tory (born May 28, 1954) is a Canadian lawyer, broadcaster, businessman, and former politician who served as the 65th mayor of Toronto from 2014 to 2023. He served as leader of the Official Opposition in Ontario from 2005 to 2007 ...

. He lost to Laurie Scott in the 2011 election who had previously held the riding.

Background

Before entering politics, Johnson was a musician, working alongside his wife

Terri Crawford Terri Crawford, formerly billed as Terry Crawford, is a Canadian musician, most noted as a two-time Juno Award nominee for Most Promising Female Vocalist at the Juno Awards of 1982 and the Juno Awards of 1983. Background Originally from Montrea ...

both in the Terry Crawford Band of the 1970s and 1980s and later as a

children's music Children's music or kids' music is music composed and performed for children. In European-influenced contexts this means music, usually songs, written specifically for a juvenile audience. The composers are usually adults. Children's music has hi ...

duo billed as Terri & Rick.

Politics

Johnson previously served as a public school

trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, refers to anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the ...

for, and chair of, the

Trillium Lakelands District School Board The Trillium Lakelands District School Board (TLDSB, known as English-language Public District School Board No. 15 prior to 1999) administers public school education for students in a large area of central Ontario, Canada, including the municipali ...

and as president of the Ontario Public School Boards Association. In his term on the OPSBA, Johnson introduced breakfast,

co-operative education Cooperative education (or co-operative education) is a structured method of combining classroom-based education with practical work experience. A cooperative education experience, commonly known as a "co-op" or work-study program, provides a ...

and literacy programs for his district. He has also served on the Lindsay

Chamber of Commerce A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to a ...

. Johnson was the Liberal candidate in Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock in the 2007 provincial election, losing to Laurie Scott. On January 9, 2009, Scott announced she was resigning her seat in order to provide Conservative Leader

a seat in the legislature. Johnson capitalized on public anger from Scott's move and narrowly defeated Tory in the subsequent by-election. Johnson served as the

Parliamentary Assistant In British politics and some Commonwealth nations, a parliamentary assistant is an unelected partisan staff member employed by a Member of Parliament (MP) to assist them with their parliamentary duties. Parliamentary assistants usually work ...

to the Minister of Infrastructure,

Bob Chiarelli Roberto Chiarelli (born September 24, 1941) is a Canadian politician. He was a Liberal member in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario who served from 1987 to 1997 and again from 2010 to 2018 who represented the ridings of Ottawa West and Otta ...

. He previously served as the Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. In the 2011 election, Johnson lost again to P.C. candidate Laurie Scott by 6,000 votes in the 2011 provincial election. He ran again in 2014 but lost again to Scott, this time by more than 3,000 votes.

Electoral record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Rick 21st-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario Canadian children's musicians Canadian educators Canadian male guitarists Canadian rock guitarists Living people Ontario Liberal Party MPPs Ontario school board trustees People from Kawartha Lakes Year of birth missing (living people)