Ruth Johnson | |
|---|---|
 Johnson in 2011 | |
| Member of theMichigan Senate | |
| Assumed office January 1, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | David B. Robertson |
| Constituency | 14th (2019–2022) 24th (2023–present) |
| 42ndSecretary of State of Michigan | |
| In office January 1, 2011 – January 1, 2019 | |
| Governor | Rick Snyder |
| Preceded by | Terri Lynn Land |
| Succeeded by | Jocelyn Benson |
| Member of theMichigan House of Representatives from the46th district | |
| In office January 1, 1999 – January 1, 2005 | |
| Preceded by | Tom Middleton |
| Succeeded by | Jim Marleau |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1955-01-08)January 8, 1955 (age 71)[1] |
| Party | Republican |
| Education | Oakland Community College Oakland University (BA) Wayne State University (MA) |
Ruth Johnson (born January 8, 1955) is an American businesswoman and politician currently serving as a member of theMichigan Senate since 2019. She was the 42ndSecretary of State of Michigan from 2011 to 2019 and a member of theMichigan House of Representatives from 1999 to 2005. She is aRepublican.
Johnson, ofHolly, was a former publicschool teacher,small business owner, and public official in a suburban area immediately north ofDetroit with a population of more than one million, prior to her election as secretary of state in November 2010.[2][3][4] She was elected to theOakland County Board of Commissioners in 1988 and served for 10 years. Johnson was elected to theMichigan House of Representatives in 1998, and re-elected in 2000 and 2002;term limits meant she was ineligible for a fourth term.[5] She was electedOakland CountyClerk andRegister of Deeds in 2004, upsetting incumbent G. William Caddell in the Republican Primary[6] and defeated Democratic nominee Jason Ellenburg in the general election.[7] She became the first woman clerk in Oakland County's 176-year history.[4] Johnson became popular for her community outreach event and parties.
In August 2006, Johnson was selected by Grand Rapids businessman and Republican gubernatorial nomineeDick DeVos as his running mate, becoming the GOP nominee forLieutenant Governor of Michigan.[4] DeVos and Johnson lost thegeneral election to the incumbent Democratic ticket ofGov.Jennifer Granholm and Lt. Gov.John Cherry.[8] In 2007, Johnson endorsed Sen.John McCain's bid for the2008 Republican presidential nomination and served as the Oakland County Chair forMcCain's Michigan campaign.[9] Johnson was re-elected County Clerk in 2008, defeating Democrat Sheila Smith.[10]
As secretary, Johnson promoted motorcycle safety initiatives, such as wearing high-visibility gear and encouraging riders to get a cycle endorsement. Johnson herself is a licensed motorcycle rider and often rides in to motorcycle-related news conferences.[11] Johnson pushed her departments to foster safe driving among teens. After reviewing the department's teen driver licensing program, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration offered recommendations for improvement but overall gave the program high praise for combating the leading cause of death for teens in the United States.[12][13] Like her time as Oakland County Clerk, Ruth Johnson because popular for community outreach events, and viral marketing campaigns[14][15]
In 2014, Michigan was named the best state in the nation for registering qualified U.S. citizens at state motor-vehicle offices, according to USA Today.[16] Also in 2014, the University of Michigan's Center for Local, State and Urban Policy found that the Secretary of State's Office was rated the second best state agency for job performance by community leaders.[17] That same year, the state's Mackinac Bridge license plate was named the best designed plate in the world.[18]
In July 2017, Ruth Johnson agreed to provide Michigan voter registration information to a federal commission created byTrump to investigate alleged illegal voting in the 2016 election.[19] Johnson indicated she would only provide basic public voter information.[20]
In 2010, she won the Republican nomination for secretary of state at the party's state convention. Her opponents werePaul Scott,Michelle McManus, Anne Norlander andCameron Brown. She went on to win the general election defeating DemocratJocelyn Benson, LibertarianScotty Boman, Green John Anthony La Pietra, and US Taxpayer Robert Gale.[21]
In 2014, Johnson defeated Detroit lawyer and Democrat Godfrey Dillard, Libertarian James Lewis, US Taxpayers Robert Gale, and Natural Law Jason Gatties to earn a second term by 10.6 percentage points, receiving 1,649,047 votes to the defeated candidates 1,431,748 votes. She drew more votes than any other Republican candidate on the ballot.[22]
After her tenure as Secretary of State, she was elected as a Michigan State Senator in 2018 and re-elected again in 2022.[23] In September 2020, Johnson filed a lawsuit against Secretary of StateJocelyn Benson for allowing votes postmarked before election day to be counted after election day.[23] The lawsuit was later dismissed.
| Michigan House of Representatives 46th District Republican Primary Election, 1998 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Republican | Ruth Johnson | 3,639 | 40.73 |
| Republican | Jeff Gallant | 3,141 | 35.15 |
| Republican | Patricia Woods | 1,885 | 21.10 |
| Republican | John Lauve | 270 | 3.02 |
| Michigan House of Representatives 46th District Election, 1998 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Republican | Ruth Johnson | 21,739 | 67.54 |
| Democratic | Roxanne La Montaine | 8,571 | 26.63 |
| Libertarian | Mark Carney | 1,876 | 5.83 |
| Michigan House of Representatives 46th District Election, 2000 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Republican | Ruth Johnson (inc.) | 29,119 | 64.48 |
| Democratic | Patrick Doyon | 13,928 | 30.84 |
| U.S. Taxpayers | Sean Patrick Sullivan | 2,110 | 4.67 |
| Michigan House of Representatives 46th District Republican Primary Election, 2002 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Republican | Ruth Johnson (inc.) | 3,833 | 68.95 |
| Republican | John Lauve | 1,726 | 31.05 |
| Michigan House of Representatives 46th District Election, 2002 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Republican | Ruth Johnson (inc.) | 21,582 | 70.88 |
| Democratic | Robert Reading | 8,866 | 29.12 |
| Michigan Secretary of State Election, 2010 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Republican | Ruth Johnson | 1,608,270 | 50.68 |
| Democratic | Jocelyn Michelle Benson | 1,434,796 | 45.22 |
| Libertarian | Scotty Boman | 58,044 | 1.83 |
| U.S. Taxpayers | Robert Gale | 41,727 | 1.31 |
| Green | John Anthony La Pietra | 30,411 | 0.96 |
| Michigan Secretary of State Election, 2014 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Republican | Ruth Johnson (inc.) | 1,649,047 | 53.53 |
| Democratic | Godfrey Dillard | 1,323,004 | 42.94 |
| Libertarian | James Lewis | 61,112 | 1.98 |
| U.S. Taxpayers | Robert Gale | 34,447 | 1.12 |
| Natural Law | Jason Robert Gatties | 13,185 | 0.43 |
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Loren Bennett | Republican nominee forLieutenant Governor of Michigan 2006 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forMichigan Secretary of State 2010,2014 | Succeeded by Mary Treder Lang |
| Michigan House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by Tom F. Middleton | Member of theMichigan House of Representatives from the46th district 1999–2005 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Secretary of State of Michigan 2011–2019 | Succeeded by |
| Michigan Senate | ||
| Preceded by | Member of theMichigan Senate from the14th district 2019–2023 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of theMichigan Senate from the24th district 2023–present | Incumbent |
 | ||