Tom Johnson | |
---|---|
Member of the
Illinois Senate from the 48th district | |
In office January 2011 – January 2013 | |
Preceded by | Randy Hultgren |
Succeeded by | Andy Manar (redistricted) |
Member of the
Illinois House of Representatives from the 50th district | |
In office January 1993 – January 2003 | |
Preceded by | Donald Hensel |
Succeeded by | Patricia Reid Lindner |
Personal details | |
Born | Oakland, California, U.S. | April 30, 1945
Died | December 3, 2018 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | (aged 73)
Political party | Republican |
Spouse | Virginia “Ginger” Van Der Molen Johnson |
Residence(s) | West Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
Alma mater |
University of Michigan (
BA) DePaul University ( JD) |
Profession | attorney |
Thomas Lee Johnson (April 30, 1945 – December 3, 2018) was a Republican Illinois State Senator. He represented the 48th district in the Illinois Senate from 2011 to 2013. Johnson previously served in the Illinois House of Representatives from 1993 to 2003. [1] [2]
Born in California and raised in South Dakota and Illinois, Johnson was the son of an ordained minister. [3] Johnson graduated from Oak Lawn Community High School in Oak Lawn, Illinois in 1963 and then served in the Army from 1966 until 1968. [4] He then earned a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Michigan in 1970. [4] He then earned a J.D. degree from the DePaul University College of Law in 1974. [4]
Johnson began his career in 1974 as a prosecutor in DuPage County, Illinois, rising to become the chief of its white-collar crime division. [4] Johnson then cofounded his own law firm in 1979. [4] He ran for U.S. Congress as a Republican in 1984, but lost in the primary to John E. Grotberg. [5] [4] [6]
In 1992, Johnson won election to the 50th district [6] in the Illinois House, where he served for the next 10 years. [4] He served in a heavily Republican district that stretched from western DuPage County to St. Charles, Illinois. [7] He chose not to seek re-election in 2002. [7]
Johnson would then go on to serve on the Illinois Prisoner Review Board. [4]
In 2010, Johnson was appointed to an Illinois Senate seat to fill the vacancy left by the ascension of Randy Hultgren to U.S. Congress. [7]
Johnson died of cancer on December 3, 2018. [4]