Dusty Johnson

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Dusty Johnson
Dusty Johnson, official portrait, 116th congress.jpg
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from South Dakota's at-large district
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 43)
Pierre, South Dakota, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)Jacquelyn
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 previously served as a South Dakota Public Utilities Commissioner from 2005 to 2011, when he was appointed chief of staff to Governor Dennis Daugaard, a position he retained 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[edit]

Johnson was born in Pierre, South Dakota. Johnson graduated from T.F. Riggs High School in 1995. He earned his B.A. in political science from University of South Dakota in 1999, where he 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[edit]

Public Utilities Commission (2004–2011)[edit]

In 2004, Johnson ran for the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission. He was elected statewide to South Dakota Public Utilities Commission. Upon his election, he subsequently became the youngest utilities commissioner in the nation.[5] He was re-elected in 2010. Johnson was also a member of the executive board of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners. In 2007, he became the Chairman of the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission a position he held until his resignation in 2011. In 2010, he led a South Dakota delegation that included then-Governor Mike Rounds and state regulators that met with FCC Commissioners on concerns with the FCC’s National Broadband Plan and its impact on small and rural providers in South Dakota.

Daugaard administration (2011–2014)[edit]

In 2011, he resigned his PUC position to become chief of staff for Governor Dennis Daugaard.[7] Johnson served four years as chief of staff to Governor Dennis Daugaard. As chief operating officer for much of state government, he supervised Cabinet Secretaries, policy advisors and many of the Governor’s projects and initiatives.

Private sector career (2014–2018)[edit]

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

U.S. House of Representatives[edit]

Elections[edit]

2018[edit]

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

Tenure[edit]

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

On March 26, 2019, Johnson was one of fourteen Republicans to vote with all House Democrats to override President Trump's veto of a measure unwinding the latter's declaration of a national emergency at the southern border.[11]

Committee assignments[12][edit]

Electoral history[edit]

Republican primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Dusty 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[13]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Republican Dusty 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

Personal life[edit]

Johnson has been actively involved as a state advisor for South Dakota Teen Age Republicans (TARs) and its Black Hills camp leader since 2004.[14] Johnson serves on the board of directors for the W.O. Farber Fund, Abbott House, and served on the South Dakota Attorney General's Open Government Task Force. Johnson has served as an adjunct professor at Dakota Wesleyan University.

References[edit]

  1. ^ FEC Contribution Report for Friends of John Thune
  2. ^ "Wayback Machine". 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. 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. ^ Brufke, Juliegrace (March 26, 2019). "House fails to override Trump veto on border wall". The Hill.
  12. ^ "About Dusty Johnson". Representative Dusty Johnson. December 3, 2012. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  13. ^ 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.
  14. ^ "TARS". penncogop.org. Pennington County GOP.

External links[edit]

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
377th
Succeeded by
John Joyce