Charlene Johnson , is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

former politician in

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

, Canada. Johnson represented the

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

Trinity-Bay de Verde Carbonear-Trinity-Bay de Verde is a provincial electoral district of the House of Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The district covers the eastern edge of Trinity Bay and the tip of Conception Bay. As of 2011, there are 6,968 eligibl ...

for the Progressive Conservative Party from 2003 to 2014. Johnson served as a minister in the cabinets of Danny Williams,

Kathy Dunderdale Kathleen Mary Margaret "Kathy" Dunderdale (née Warren; born February 1952) is a politician and former MHA who served as the tenth premier of Newfoundland and Labrador from December 3, 2010, to January 24, 2014. Dunderdale was born and raised in ...

and Tom Marshall. During her time in cabinet, she was Minister of the Environment and Conservation, Minister of Child, Youth and Family Services, Minister of Innovation, Business and Rural Development, and Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board. Johnson is the youngest woman ever elected to the

House of Assembly House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level. Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible governme ...

, and the only woman to ever give birth while serving as a Member of the House of Assembly (MHA).

Background

Johnson was born in

Carbonear Carbonear is a town on the Avalon Peninsula in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It overlooks the west side of Conception Bay and had a history long tied to fishing and shipbuilding. Since the late 20th century, its economy has changed to emphasi ...

, Newfoundland and Labrador, and raised in the

Conception Bay Conception Bay (CB) is a bay on the southeast coast of Newfoundland, Canada. The population (in 2011) of people living in municipalities (or unincorporated census subdivisions) located along the coast of Conception Bay was 90,490 making it on ...

community of Gull Island. She studied at the

University of New Brunswick The University of New Brunswick (UNB) is a public university with two primary campuses in Fredericton and Saint John, New Brunswick. It is the oldest English-language university in Canada, and among the oldest public universities in North Americ ...

, where she was awarded a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree in Forest Engineering. Johnson then obtained a Masters of Applied Science degree in

Environmental Engineering Environmental engineering is a professional engineering discipline that encompasses broad scientific topics like chemistry, biology, ecology, geology, hydraulics, hydrology, microbiology, and mathematics to create solutions that will protect and a ...

from

Memorial University of Newfoundland Memorial University of Newfoundland, also known as Memorial University or MUN (), is a public university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook, elsewhere in Newfoundland and ...

Politics

In the 2003 provincial election, Johnson became the youngest woman to ever be elected to the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly. Johnson defeated

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

incumbent Lloyd Snow in the district of Trinity-Bay de Verde, she won 63 percent of the vote compared to Snow's 32 percent. She was re-elected in the 2007 provincial election, taking 72 percent of the vote. Following the election, Premier Danny Williams appointed her Minister of Environment and Conservation. In April 2009, Johnson became the first MHA in Newfoundland and Labrador, and one of only a handful of women in Canada, to give birth while being a member of a provincial or federal legislature. Johnson served as the Environment Minister till January 2011, when Premier Kathy Dunderdale appointed her Minister of Child, Youth and Family Services. Later that year she was re-elected, winning 62 percent of the popular. Johnson remained in the portfolio of Child, Youth and Family services when Dunderdale named her new cabinet several weeks after the election. In October 2013, Johnson was appointed Minister of Innovation, Business and Rural Development. In January 2014, she was named Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board replacing Tom Marshall who had become premier. In September 2014, Johnson announced she was leaving politics to focus on her family. Her father, Ron Johnson ran in the byelection to replace her, but was defeated by Liberal Steve Crocker.

Post-politics

In November 2017, Johnson was appointed as CEO of the Newfoundland and Labrador Oil & Gas Industries Association (Noia).

Electoral record

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References

External links

Charlene Johnson's PC Party biography

Charlene Johnson's House of Assembly profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Charlene Members of the Executive Council of Newfoundland and Labrador Progressive Conservative Party of Newfoundland and Labrador MHAs Living people Women MHAs in Newfoundland and Labrador People from Carbonear 21st-century Canadian politicians 21st-century Canadian women politicians Women government ministers of Canada Finance ministers of Newfoundland and Labrador Female finance ministers Year of birth missing (living people)