Mitzi Johnson (born November 18, 1970) is a Democratic Vermont politician who has served as the Speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives since January 2017. She represents the Grand Isle-Chittenden (GI-CHI) district (seat number 1).
Video Mitzi Johnson
Early life
Mitzi Johnson was born in Clifton Park, New York on November 18, 1970. She was educated in the Shenendehowa Central School District, including Shenendehowa High School, and graduated from the University of Vermont in 1993 with a degree in environmental science and international development. In 2013, she completed a master of public administration degree from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
Maps Mitzi Johnson
Career
After graduating from college, Johnson became a resident of South Hero. As a public policy professional, her experience includes program and project development for Hunger Free Vermont and the Vermont Freedom to Marry Task Force. She was also a vegetable grower at South Hero's Allenholm Farm. In addition, she has worked as a substitute teacher, piano teacher, and scarf designer.
Johnson was active in South Hero as a volunteer with South Hero Rescue, which provides fire fighting and emergency medical response in Grand isle County. In addition, she has served on the board of directors of the Chittenden-Grand Isle County Visiting Nurse Association (2006-2012) and the South Hero Land Trust (1995-2008). From 2002 to 2006, she was a member of the advisory board for the University of Vermont's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. In 2012, she was elected to the Vermont Electric Cooperative's board of directors.
Vermont House of Representatives
In 2000, Johnson was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for the Vermont House of Representatives. In 2002, she was elected to the House; she has been reelected every two years since then. From 2003 to 2007 she was a member of the House Agriculture Committee. From 2007 to 2017 she served on the Appropriations Committee; from 2015 to 2017 she was the committee's chairwoman.
Speaker of the House
Speaker of the House Shap Smith did not run for reelection to his House seat in 2016, and ran instead for the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor. In November 2016, Johnson was a candidate to succeed Smith as Speaker, as were Sarah Copeland-Hanzas and Charles "Chip" Conquest. Johnson and Copeland-Hanzas became the front runners; by late November, Copeland-Hanzas concluded that Johnson's support among Democratic members of the House was enough to win a contested vote, so she withdrew. In a December 2016 meeting of the Vermont House's Democratic caucus, Copeland-Hanzas nominated Johnson for Speaker, and Johnson was unanimously selected as the Democratic candidate for the position. In the full House's January 2017 election for Speaker, Johnson defeated Republican Linda Myers of Essex.
References
External links
- "GI-CHI" district legislative map
- "Member Biography, Representative Mitzi Johnson". Vermont House of Representatives. Montpelier, VT: Vermont General Assembly. 2015.
- Megias, Mari (December 16, 2014). "Taking Matters into Her Own Hands: Mitzi Johnson MC/MPA 2013". HKS Alumni News. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Kennedy School of Government.
- Mansfield, Erin (November 20, 2016). "Three Campaign to Become Speaker of Vermont House". VT Digger. Montpelier, VT.
- Hirschfeld, Peter; Kinzel, Bob (November 28, 2016). "As Copeland-Hanzas Steps Aside, Mitzi Johnson Poised To Become Vermont's Next Speaker". Vermont Public Radio. Colchester, VT.
- Mansfield, Erin (December 4, 2016). "House Democrats Formally Nominate Johnson for Speaker". VT Digger. Montpelier, VT.
- Hallenbeck, Terri (January 4, 2017). "New House Speaker Mitzi Johnson Shifts Committee Jurisdiction". Seven Days. Burlington, VT.
Source of article : Wikipedia
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