Johnson was born in Bend,Oregon,as the daughter of Sam Johnson,who served in the state house. She was raised in Redmond,Oregon,and educated at Oregon Episcopal School,Carleton College,and Lewis and Clark College. She operated a helicopter business and participated in international helicopter competitions. She was active in local politics in Columbia County,Oregon,where she served on the boards of multiple groups and she was elected to the Port of St. Helens board in a 1993 special election. She was the manager of aeronautics in the Oregon Department of Transportation from 1993 to 1998.
She was elected to the state house in the 2000 election and reelected in the 2002 and 2004 elections. Johnson was appointed to replace Joan Dukes in the state senate in 2005,and was reelected in the 2006,2010,2014,and 2018 elections. She was a moderate and conservative member of the Democratic caucus and held a controlling swing vote. She resigned from the state senate in 2021,to run in the 2022 gubernatorial election as an independent candidate,losing to Tina Kotek.
Tony Federici,a member of the Port of St. Helens board from the fourth position resigned in January 1993,in order to take office in the state house from the 1st district. Johnson defeated four other candidates in the 1993 special election and won without opposition in the 1997 election.[10][16][17] She replaced Eric Dahlgren as chair of the board in 1999.[18] She was appointed as the Manager of Aeronautics in the Oregon Department of Transportation in 1993,and served until her resignation on September 7,1998.[12]
Oregon House of Representatives
Jackie Taylor,a member of the state house from the 1st district,was term-limited during the 2000 election.[3] Johnson faced no opposition in the Democratic primary and won the Republican primary as a write-in candidate and defeated Constitution nominee Bob Ekstrom,the chair of the party,and Libertarian nominee Don McDaniel.[19][20][21] She won the Democratic and Republican nominations and was elected from the 31st district in the 2002 election against Constitution nominee Ekstrom and independent candidate Mervin Arnold.[22][23] She won the Democratic and Republican nominations and defeated Constitution nominee Ron Ross in the 2004 election.[24][25]
In the state house Johnson used the same desk that her father had used during his tenure.[26] During her tenure in the state house she served on the Ways and Means committee.[27] Johnson was appointed to a shared seat on the Oregon Emergency Board with Representative Dan Doyle in 2001.[28] Following the September 11 attacks the House Special Task Force on State Emergency Preparedness was formed with Johnson being one of its members.[29] She worked as Ron Wyden's campaign chair during the 2004 United States Senate election.[30]
Oregon Senate
Joan Dukes,a member of the Oregon Senate,was appointed to the Northwest Power and Conservation Council by Governor Ted Kulongoski in 2004. Johnson announced on November 24,2004,that she was interested in replacing Dukes in the state senate.[31] Johnson,Bill Blank,and Emil Nyberg were nominated by the Columbia County Democratic Committee as possible options to replace Dukes.[32][33] County commissioners from Columbia,Clatsop,Multnomah,Tillamook,and Washington counties voted unanimously on January 19,2005,to appoint Johnson and she was sworn in on January 20.[34][4]Brad Witt was selected to replace her in the state house.[35]
She defeated Republican nominee Don Fell and Constitution nominee Robert J. Simmering in the 2006 election.[36][37] She defeated Republican nominee Bob Horning in the 2010 election.[38][39]Howard Dean,the former chair of the Democratic National Committee,called for Johnson to be replaced after she voted with the Republicans against voter registration legislation in 2013.[40][41] She defeated independent candidate Andrew Kaza,Constitution nominee Ekstrom,and Libertarian nominee Perry Roll in the 2014 election.[42][43] She won the Democratic,Republican,and Independent nominations,with write-in votes in the Republican and Independent primaries,and defeated Constitution nominee Ray Biggs in the 2018 election.[44][45]
During her tenure in the state senate she served on the Rules committee and co-chaired the Ways and Means committee.[4][46][47] An ethics investigation was launched against her on June 22,2007,as she did not report profits of $119,000 from selling property connected to legislation she sponsored and she later paid a $600 fine.[48][49][50] She was later investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.[51] Due to the Democrats' narrow control of the state senate she had a controlling swing vote and blocked legislation.[52][53]
Johnson hit a driver with her car in 2013,resulting in Betsy Johnson spending six months in a wheelchair and not fully recovering until 2019. She was sued by the driver in 2015,but Johnson's lawyers argued the lawsuit was frivolous,and a violation of the Oregon Constitution due to her being in transit to her complete her duties as an elected official. The lawsuit was subsequently dismissed.[57]
Gubernatorial campaign
Johnson was considered as a possible gubernatorial or secretary of state candidate in the 2000s.[58][59] She announced on October 14,2021,in an email that she was going to run as an independent in the 2022 gubernatorial election stating "[H]aving to choose between another left-wing liberal promising more of the same or a right-wing Trump apologist –is no choice at all".[60][61] The Democratic caucus subsequently removed her from all of her committee assignments.[62] She announced on December 14,that she was going to resign from the state senate to focus on her gubernatorial campaign and it took effect on December 16.[63][64] Emmet Duffy is her campaign manager.[65]
TEDxPortland was criticized for,and subsequently apologized for,inviting Betsy Johnson to a May 2022 conference in violation of the Internal Revenue Service's regulations for 501(c)3 nonprofits,which require that if any political candidates are invited to speak at an event,all other candidates are given an equal opportunity.[66][67] She received endorsements that included former Governor Kulongoski and former United States Senator Gordon H. Smith.[68] As of early June,her campaign has raised $5,611,714.37,with $1 million coming from Phil Knight,and spent $3,292,831.82.[69][70] Knight increased his stake in the race in late August,contributing another $750,000 to Johnson's campaign.[71] In July,OPB reported that "shirts bearing the Confederate flag...dott[ed] the crowd" at a June rally in St. Helens,[72] a flag which Johnson later condemned as "a symbol of treason against the United States".[73] She stated to OPB in September that as governor she would lift the moratorium on capital punishment and enforce the death penalty.[74]
Johnson's campaign spent $897,000 to collect 48,214 signatures,with 23,744 being required to appear on the ballot,and 37,679 were validated by the secretary of state.[75][76][77]
In the general election,Johnson conceded to Tina Kotek after garnering less than 10% of the total vote.[78]
Political positions
Johnson was considered as a moderate and conservative member of the state legislature.[79][80][81] She received a lifetime rating of 34.34% from the American Conservative Union.[82] The American Civil Liberties Union gave her a score of 43% in 2005,50% in 2007,0% in 2008,60% in 2009,20% in 2013,83% in 2015,and 50% in 2017.[83]
Jobs and economics
Johnson supported the construction of a $230 million ethanol plant in Clatskanie,Oregon.[84] She voted in committee in favor of legislation to ban smoking in restaurants,but stated that she did so only to send it to a vote in the state house.[85] In 2002,Johnson voted in favor of the unsuccessful effort to overturn legislation to borrow $50 million for education against revenue made from a cigarette tax.[86]
Johnson opposed four pieces of gun control legislation in 2013,stating "I would do something meaningful rather than symbolic" and wanted more mental health access instead.[92] She voted against background checks for private gun sales and red flag legislation.[93][94] She is a member of the National Rifle Association and received an "A" rating and endorsement from the NRA Political Victory Fund during the 2014 and 2018 elections.[95][96]
She voted against legislation in 2019 to redefine aggravated murder and limit its scope,the only crime in Oregon which is eligible for the death penalty.[97][74] She also is in favor of lifting the state moratorium on the death penalty.[98]
Homelessness and housing
Johnson opposes a housing first approach to homelessness,and would enforce laws against illegal camping in Oregon. She blames recent drug legalization,such as through 2020 Oregon Ballot Measure 110,for driving the crisis and would attempt to repeal it,while also focusing on deregulating housing development.[99][100]
Johnson has not shown support for adopting political campaign contribution limits in Oregon,and said she would oppose limits she felt "result in an uneven playing field for anyone participating in elections".[104] She voted against legislation to make voter registration automatic for people with driver's licenses.[105]
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