Rob Johnson (Seattle politician)

For other people named Rob Johnson, see Rob Johnson (disambiguation).
Rob Johnson
Member of the Seattle City Council
from District 4
In office
January 4, 2016 – April 5, 2019
Preceded byJean Godden
Succeeded byAbel Pacheco Jr.
Personal details
Born1977 or 1978 (age 45–46)[1]
SpouseKatie
Children3
ResidenceSeattle, Washington
EducationWillamette University (BA)
University of California, Los Angeles (MURP)
OccupationPolitician

Robert M. Johnson is an American politician. He served on the Seattle City Council representing the fourth district, covering northeast Seattle and the area around the University of Washington, from 2016 until his resignation in April 2019.[2]

In 2015, Johnson was elected to the city council after defeating Michael Maddux by a 708-vote margin in the nonpartisan general election.[3] Johnson and Maddux had previously defeated 12-year incumbent Jean Godden in the August primary election. Both Johnson and Maddux ran as progressive urbanists (favoring denser city planning rather than urban or suburban sprawl[4]), defeating slow-growth candidates Godden and Tony Provine. Prior to the election, Johnson was executive director of Transportation Choices Coalition, an advocacy group in Washington state, where he managed their campaign for the Sound Transit 2 rail expansion programs.[5] Johnson was sworn into office on January 4, 2016.[6] Several days later, he was appointed to the Sound Transit board of directors by King County Executive Dow Constantine, replacing fellow councilmember Mike O'Brien.[7] He stated that he would work to make Seattle more affordable, and to implement more transportation and education options.[8] In November 2018, he announced he would not seek a second city council term.[9] Shortly after the announcement, he was offered a position as transportation adviser to the NHL Seattle project.[10]

In late March 2019, Johnson announced he would vacate his council seat on April 5, 2019. After his resignation, an interim council member was appointed to take Johnson's place until the November 2019 election.[11]

Johnson's family has lived in Seattle for five generations. He lives in the Ravenna neighborhood with his wife, Katie, and their three daughters.[9][12]

  1. ^ "TCC Director Rob Johnson to Run for City Council". SeattleMet. November 12, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2019.
  2. ^ Beekman, Daniel (November 4, 2015). "Urbanists appear to be big winners in Seattle election". The Seattle Times. Retrieved March 17, 2016.
  3. ^ Kamb, Lewis (November 6, 2015). "Rob Johnson elected to Seattle City Council District 4 seat". The Seattle Times. Retrieved March 17, 2016.
  4. ^ "Why I Call Myself an Urbanist". 19 January 2016.
  5. ^ Bonjukian, Scott (June 1, 2015). "2015 Seattle City Council Election, District 4: Rob Johnson Interview". The Urbanist. Retrieved March 17, 2016.
  6. ^ Beekman, Daniel (January 4, 2016). "New Seattle City Council sworn in Monday". The Seattle Times.
  7. ^ "Constantine names Rob Johnson and Nancy Backus to Sound Transit Board of Directors" (Press release). Office of the King County Executive. January 7, 2016. Retrieved March 22, 2016.
  8. ^ Johnson, Rob. "Rob Johnson". Seattle.gov. Seattle. Retrieved 29 May 2017.
  9. ^ a b Beekman, Daniel (8 November 2018). "Rob Johnson won't run for re-election in Seattle's big 2019 City Council elections". Seattle Times. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  10. ^ Baker, Geoff (11 January 2019). "Outgoing City Council member Rob Johnson hired by NHL Seattle to assist on transportation". Seattle Times. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  11. ^ Beekman, Daniel (March 21, 2019). "Upzone booster Rob Johnson to resign early from Seattle City Council, triggering appointment process". The Seattle Times. Retrieved March 21, 2019.
  12. ^ "About Councilmember Rob Johnson". Seattle City Councilmember Johnson. Retrieved March 21, 2019.