Craig M. Johnson (born April 21, 1971) is an American politician and former
Democratic Party member of the
New York State Senate
The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature; the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Its members are elected to two-year terms; there are no term limits. There are 63 seats in the Senate.
Partisan comp ...
for the
7th district.
Education and early career
Johnson earned a
B.A.
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...
degree (''
magna cum laude
Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...
'') from
Amherst College
Amherst College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zephaniah Swift Moore, Amherst is the third oldest institution of higher educati ...
in 1993. He earned his
Juris Doctor
The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law
and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice l ...
degree (''
cum laude
Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...
'') from
St. John's University School of Law
St. John's University School of Law is a Roman Catholic law school in Jamaica, Queens, New York, United States, affiliated with St. John's University.
The School of Law was founded in 1925, and confers Juris Doctor degrees and degrees for Maste ...
in 1996.
He was admitted to the New York bar in 1997.
Johnson has practiced law at the law firm of Jaspan Schlesinger Hoffman LLP in
Garden City, New York
Garden City is a village located on Long Island in Nassau County New York. It is the Greater Garden City area's anchor community. The population was 23,272 at the 2020 census.
The Incorporated Village of Garden City is primarily located within ...
.
Political career
Johnson was first elected to the
Nassau County Legislature
The Nassau County Legislature is the lawmaking body of Nassau County, New York. Currently, it has 19 different members from 19 different districts. It was formed in 1996 to succeed the county's Board of Supervisors, which was ruled unconstitutio ...
in May 2000, succeeding his mother Barbara Johnson who died in March 2000.
On February 6, 2007, he became the first male Democrat elected to the State Senate from
North Hempstead
North Hempstead is one of three towns in Nassau County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 237,639 at the 2020 census.
History
The area was first settled by Europeans around 1643 and became part of the town of Hemps ...
in more than a century. He represented the 7th Senatorial District, which includes all of North Hempstead and parts of
Hempstead and
Oyster Bay. He chaired the Senate Investigations and Government Operations Committee.
In the November 2, 2010 general election,
Mineola Mayor
Jack Martins
Joaquim "Jack" M. Martins (born June 19, 1967) is an American attorney and politician serving as a member of the New York State Senate for the 7th district. A Republican, he previously served as mayor of Mineola, New York.
Early life and e ...
, Johnson's Republican challenger (who was also backed by the Independence and Conservative Parties), defeated Johnson by 451 votes.
On December 20, 2010, New York's highest court rejected Johnson's final appeal in regard to the election results.
Personal life
Johnson lives in
Port Washington, New York
Port Washington is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) on the Cow Neck Peninsula in the Town of North Hempstead, in Nassau County, on the North Shore of Long Island, in New York. The hamlet is the anchor community of the Greater Port Wa ...
with his wife Elizabeth and three children.
Election results
* February 2007
special election
A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...
, NYS Senate, 7th SD
:
* November 2008
general election
A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
, NYS Senate, 7th SD
:
* November 2010
general election
A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
, NYS Senate, 7th SD
:
See also
*
2009 New York State Senate leadership crisis
9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding .
Evolution of the Arabic digit
In the beginning, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bottom dot. The Kshatrapa, Andhra and ...
*
Paterson, David ''"
Black, Blind, & In Charge: A Story of Visionary Leadership and Overcoming Adversity."''Skyhorse Publishing. New York, New York, 2020
References
External links
Former New York State Senate website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Craig M.
1971 births
Living people
Democratic Party New York (state) state senators
Politicians from New York City
People from Port Washington, New York
Amherst College alumni
St. John's University School of Law alumni
21st-century American politicians