Robert James Johnson (born January 21, 1988) is an American politician. He was elected to the

Iowa House of Representatives The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed ...

in November 2024, succeeding Ako Abdul-Samad in District 34.

Personal life and education

Johnson was raised in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

by his mother Janice. At the age of six, he and two of his sisters were placed in the care of their godparents before an aunt assumed guardianship. Johnson moved to

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

, in 2006, and graduated from

Drake University Drake University is a private university in Des Moines, Iowa, United States. The University offers over 140 undergraduate and graduate programs, including professional programs in business, education, Legal education, law, and pharmacy. Drake U ...

in 2010 with a bachelor of arts in politics. While attending Drake, Johnson co-hosted ''The Young Legends Not Yet but Soon to Be'' on KDRA-LP. He also served on the Student Senate. Outside of politics, he works for Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, is an associate minister at Corinthian Baptist Church, and hosts the Fueling Hope Annual Gas Giveaway in

Des Moines Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

. The event began in 2022, as a way for Johnson to celebrate his birthday.

Political career

Johnson served as a deputy campaign manager for Ako Abdul-Samad in 2014 and was responsible for religious outreach on behalf of the Democratic ticket in Iowa during the 2018 Iowa Secretary of State election, the

2020 United States presidential election United States presidential election, Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 3, 2020. The Democratic Party (United States), Democratic ticket of former vice president Joe Biden and California junior senator Kamala H ...

and the

2022 Iowa gubernatorial election The 2022 Iowa gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 2022. Incumbent Republican Party (United States), Republican Governor Kim Reynolds won re-election to a second full term, defeating Democratic Party (United States), Democratic nomi ...

. After Abdul-Samad announced his retirement from the

in 2024, Johnson announced his candidacy, and received endorsements from Abdul-Samad and

Rob Sand Robert Sand (born August 12, 1982) is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the 33rd Iowa auditor of state since 2019. Sand is a member of the Democratic Party. Sand was the assistant attorney general of Iowa from 2010 to 2017. I ...

. Johnson won a Democratic Party primary for District 34 against three other candidates, and defeated the Republican candidate Danielle Duggan in the general election.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Rob 1988 births Living people 21st-century members of the Iowa General Assembly Democratic Party members of the Iowa House of Representatives Politicians from Des Moines, Iowa Drake University alumni Baptists from Iowa Baptist ministers from the United States Insurance agents American businesspeople in insurance 21st-century American businesspeople Businesspeople from Des Moines, Iowa Clergy from Des Moines, Iowa African-American Baptist ministers African-American state legislators in Iowa 21st-century African-American businesspeople 21st-century African-American politicians Politicians from Chicago