Dusty Johnson

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Dusty Johnson
Dusty Johnson - 117th Congress.jpg
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from South Dakota's at-large district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 2019
Preceded byKristi Noem
Chief of Staff to the Governor of South Dakota
In office
January 8, 2011 – November 7, 2014
GovernorDennis Daugaard
Preceded byNeil Fulton
Succeeded byTony Venhuizen
Member of the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission
In office
January 2005 – January 8, 2011
Preceded byJim Burg
Succeeded byChris Nelson
Personal details
Born (1976-09-30) September 30, 1976 (age 45)
Pierre, South Dakota, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
Jacquelyn Dice
(m. 1999)
Children3
EducationUniversity of South Dakota (BA)
University of Kansas (MPA)
WebsiteHouse website

Dustin M. Johnson (born September 30, 1976) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for South Dakota's at-large congressional district since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he served as South Dakota Public Utilities Commissioner from 2005 to 2011, when he was appointed chief of staff to Governor Dennis Daugaard, a position he held until 2014.[1][2][3] Between his state political career and congressional service, Johnson was the vice president of Vantage Point Solutions in Mitchell, South Dakota.

Early life and education[]

Johnson was born in Pierre, South Dakota. He graduated from T.F. Riggs High School in 1995. He graduated from the University of South Dakota with Omicron Delta Kappa honors with a B.A. in political science in 1999, and was a member of fraternity Phi Delta Theta.[4] He earned his M.P.A. from University of Kansas in 2002.[5] In 1998, Johnson was named a Truman Scholar.[6] As a Truman Scholar, he worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C. In 2003, Johnson worked as a senior policy advisor for then-South Dakota Governor Mike Rounds.

State government career[]

Public Utilities Commission (2004–2011)[]

In 2004, Johnson was elected to the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission. He was the youngest utilities commissioner in the nation.[5] He was reelected in 2010. Johnson was also a member of the executive board of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners. In 2007, he became chair of the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission, a position he held until he resigned in 2011. In 2010, he led a South Dakota delegation that included then-Governor Rounds and state regulators that met with FCC Commissioners about concerns over the FCC's National Broadband Plan and its impact on small and rural providers in South Dakota.

Daugaard administration (2011–2014)[]

In 2011, he resigned his PUC position to become Governor Dennis Daugaard's chief of staff,[7] a position he held for four years. As chief operating officer for much of state government, he supervised cabinet secretaries, policy advisors and many of Daugaard's projects and initiatives.

Private sector career (2014–2018)[]

In 2014, Johnson resigned as chief of staff, leaving the public sector to work for Vantage Point Solutions in Mitchell, South Dakota.[8] Fellow Truman Scholar Tony Venhuizen succeeded Johnson as Daugaard's chief of staff.[9] Johnson resigned his position with Vantage Point Solutions in 2018 upon his accession to Congress.

U.S. House of Representatives[]

Elections[]

2018

On November 15, 2016, Johnson announced his candidacy for U.S. Representative for South Dakota's at-large congressional district.[10] The announcement came shortly after Kristi Noem announced she would not seek reelection to Congress in order to run in the 2018 South Dakota gubernatorial election.[10] Johnson defeated Secretary of State of South Dakota Shantel Krebs and State Senator Neal Tapio in the June 5 Republican primary. He defeated Democratic nominee Tim Bjorkman, a retired circuit court judge, and two minor candidates in the November general election.

2020

On February 19, 2020, Johnson announced his bid for reelection to the House.[11] On February 4, 2020, former state representative Liz Marty May announced she would challenge Johnson in the Republican primary.[12]

Two Democrats, Brian Wirth of Dell Rapids and Whitney Raver of Custer, announced their candidacy for the House seat,[13] but neither got the required number of signatures to make the ballot.[14] According to state party chairman Randy Seiler, Wirth and Raver's canvassing efforts were hampered by the COVID-19 pandemic.[15] On June 2, Johnson won the Republican primary, 77%–23%.[16] He won the general election with 81% of the vote.[17]

2022

On October 12, 2021, State Representative Taffy Howard announced that she would challenge Johnson in the Republican primary.[18]

Tenure[]

Johnson was sworn into the U.S. House of Representatives on January 3, 2019, and joined the Problem Solvers Caucus soon after.

Border wall[]

On March 26, 2019, Johnson was one of 14 Republicans to vote with all House Democrats to override President Trump's veto of a measure revoking Trump's declaration of a national emergency at the southern border.[19]

January 6 commission[]

On May 19, 2021, Johnson was one of 35 Republicans who joined all Democrats in voting to approve legislation to establish the January 6, 2021 commission meant to investigate the storming of the U.S. Capitol.[20]

Liz Cheney[]

During the second vote to oust Liz Cheney, Johnson was among the few House Republicans who voted to keep her as conference chair.[21]

Committee assignments[22][]

  • Committee on Education and Labor
    • Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Human Services
    • Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions
  • Committee on Agriculture
    • Subcommittee on Nutrition, Oversight, and Department Operations
    • Subcommittee on Commodity Exchanges, Energy, and Credit

Caucus memberships[]

Electoral history[]

2018 Republican primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican CheckedDusty Johnson 47,032 46.8
Republican Shantel Krebs 29,442 29.3
Republican Neal Tapio 23,980 24.0
Total votes 100,454 100
South Dakota's at-large congressional district, 2018[26]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican CheckedDusty Johnson 202,446 60.35% -3.75%
Democratic Tim Bjorkman 120,816 36.01% +0.11%
Independent Ron Wieczorek 7,313 2.18% N/A
Libertarian George D. Hendrickson 4,896 1.46% N/A
Total votes 335,471 100.0% N/A
Republican hold
South Dakota's at-large congressional district, 2020[27]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican CheckedDusty Johnson (incumbent) 321,984 80.96% +20.61%
Libertarian Randy Luallin 75,748 19.04% +17.58%
Total votes 397,732 100.0%
Republican hold

Personal life[]

Johnson has been actively involved as a state advisor for South Dakota Teen Age Republicans (TARs) and its Black Hills camp leader since 2004.[28] He serves on the board of directors for the W.O. Farber Fund, Abbott House, and on the South Dakota Attorney General's Open Government Task Force. Johnson has served as an adjunct professor at Dakota Wesleyan University.

References[]

  1. ^ FEC Contribution Report for Friends of John Thune
  2. ^ "Mike Rounds - Governor of South Dakota". December 29, 2010. Archived from the original on December 29, 2010. Retrieved November 15, 2018.
  3. ^ "Dusty Johnson – South Dakota War College". dakotawarcollege.com. Retrieved November 15, 2018.
  4. ^ "Phi Delta Theta GHQ on Instagram: "Congratulations to the many Phis across the United States who won election victories last evening. Indiana Beta (Wabash) Phi Mike Braun…"". Instagram. Archived from the original on 2021-12-26. Retrieved November 15, 2018.
  5. ^ a b "Crisis or Renaissance". puc.sd.gov. South Dakota Public Utilities Commission.
  6. ^ "Harry S. Truman Foundation". Truman.gov.
  7. ^ "Dusty Johnson to be Daugaard's chief of staff". mitchellrepublic.com.
  8. ^ "Dusty Johnson to resign as Daugaard's chief of staff". usatoday.com. USA TODAY.
  9. ^ "Venhuizen to succeed Johnson as chief of staff". argusleader.com. Argus Leader.
  10. ^ a b "Dusty Johnson planning run for Congress in 2018". KSFY.com.
  11. ^ "Dusty Johnson kicks off reelection campaign". February 19, 2020. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  12. ^ "Liz Marty May announces candidacy for US Congress". February 4, 2020. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  13. ^ "Wirth, Raver seeking U.S. House seat". August 27, 2019. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  14. ^ "South Dakota Democrats fail to field 2020 House candidate". April 8, 2020. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  15. ^ "South Dakota Democrats will not field a U.S. House candidate in 2020". abc Dakota News Now. April 7, 2020. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
  16. ^ "Statewide races". June 2, 2020. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  17. ^ "General Election - November 3, 2020" (PDF). Secretary of State of South Dakota. November 10, 2020. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  18. ^ "South Dakota lawmaker to challenge Johnson's US House seat". October 12, 2021. Retrieved October 12, 2021.
  19. ^ Brufke, Juliegrace (March 26, 2019). "House fails to override Trump veto on border wall". The Hill.
  20. ^ LeBlanc, Paul (May 19, 2021). "Here are the 35 House Republicans who voted for the January 6 commission". CNN. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  21. ^ https://www.argusleader.com/story/news/2021/05/12/liz-cheney-vote-rep-dusty-johnson-votes-keep-gop-leadership-donald-trump-south-dakota-congressman/5063242001/
  22. ^ "About Dusty Johnson". Representative Dusty Johnson. 2012-12-03. Retrieved 2019-02-15.
  23. ^ "MEMBERS". RMSP. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
  24. ^ "Featured Members". Problem Solvers Caucus. Retrieved 2021-03-28.
  25. ^ "CCA_Members_List" (PDF). Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute. Retrieved 2021-12-07.
  26. ^ Johnson, Cheryl L. (February 28, 2019). "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 6, 2018". Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  27. ^ "General Election - November 3, 2020" (PDF). Secretary of State of South Dakota. November 10, 2020. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  28. ^ "TARS". penncogop.org. Pennington County GOP.

External links[]

U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by
Kristi Noem
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from South Dakota's at-large congressional district

2019–present
Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by
Chrissy Houlahan
United States representatives by seniority
324th
Succeeded by
John Joyce
Retrieved from ""