Jarvis Johnson
{{Short description|American politician (born 1971)}}
{{About|the Texan politician|the online content creator|Jarvis Johnson (YouTuber)}}
{{Infobox officeholder
|name = Jarvis Johnson
|image = Jarvis Johnson in 2022 (cropped).jpg
|caption = Johnson in 2022
|state_house1 = Texas
|district1 = 139th
|term_start1 = May 19, 2016
|term_end1 = January 14, 2025
|predecessor1 = Sylvester Turner
|successor1 = Charlene Ward Johnson
|office2 = Member of the Houston City Council
from the B District
|term_start2 = January 2, 2006
|term_end2 = January 2, 2012
|predecessor2 = Carol Galloway
|successor2 = Jerry Davis
|birth_name = Jarvis Diallo Johnson
|birth_date = {{birth date and age|1971|09|27}}
|birth_place = Houston, Texas, U.S.
|death_date =
|death_place =
|party = Democratic
|spouse = Charlene Ward Johnson (divorced){{cite news |last1=Willey |first1=Jessica |title=HCC Trustee's questionable drink during meeting sparks speculation and board response |url=https://abc13.com/was-hcc-board-chair-trustee-drinking-during-virtual-meeting-houston-community-college/14364229/ |access-date=3 January 2025 |work=ABC 13 Eyewitness News (ABC Houston affiliate) |date=26 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241129010419/https://abc13.com/was-hcc-board-chair-trustee-drinking-during-virtual-meeting-houston-community-college/14364229/ |archive-date=29 November 2024}}
|education = Texas Southern University (BA)
}}
Jarvis Diallo Johnson (born September 27, 1971) is an American entrepreneur and politician who served in the Texas House of Representatives. A Democrat, he represented the 139th district from 2016 to 2025 and previously served on the Houston City Council.
Early life and career
Johnson grew up in Houston's Fifth Ward.
In 1996, Johnson graduated from Texas Southern University with a degree in speech communications. In 1995, while in college, he became executive director of Phoenix Outreach Youth Center,{{cite news |last1=Martin |first1=Betty L. |title=Phoenix Outreach nurtures youth |url=https://www.chron.com/news/article/phoenix-outreach-nurtures-youth-1489927.php |access-date=3 January 2025 |work=Houston Chronicle |date=15 July 2004}} ending his affiliation with them in 2005.{{cite news |title=Questions raised about councilman's ex-charity |url=https://abc13.com/archive/7605522/ |access-date=3 January 2025 |work=ABC 13 Eyewitness News (ABC Houston affiliate) |date=12 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509045859/https://abc13.com/archive/7605522/ |archive-date=9 May 2021}}, the same year he was elected to the Houston City Council to represent District B.
Political career
=Houston City Council (2005–2009)=
In 2005, Johnson ran for Houston City Council District B, a seat held by term limited Carol Mims Galloway. In an eight candidate race,{{cite news |last1=Stiles |first1=Matt |title=ELECTION 2005: No shortage of hopefuls to represent District B |url=http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/3399173 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051017210013/http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/3399173 |url-status=dead |archive-date=2005-10-17 |access-date=3 January 2025 |work=Houston Chronicle |date=17 October 2005}} Johnson received nearly 4,000 votes, earning a spot in the December run off election. In December 2005, Johnson won the Houston City Council District B race by over 60% of the vote.{{cite news |last1=Stiles |first1=Matt |title=Lovell wins close council race |url=https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/lovell-wins-close-council-race-1937831.php |access-date=3 January 2025 |work=Houston Chronicle |date=11 December 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230325172416/https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/lovell-wins-close-council-race-1937831.php |archive-date=25 March 2023}} He was reelected in the 2007 elections and 2009 elections.
Johnson served as chair of the City of Houston's Human Services and Technology Access Committee.{{cite web |title=Council Committee on Human Services & Technology: Council Member Jarvis Johnson, Chair |url=https://www.houstontx.gov/citysec/committee/prioragendas/humanservices120709.pdf |website=City of Houston |access-date=3 January 2025}} He also served on the Houston City Council's Committee on Budget and Fiscal Affairs,{{cite web |title=City of Houston Council Committee on Budget & Fiscal Affairs Council, Agenda (May 3, 2011) |url=https://www.houstontx.gov/citysec/committee/prioragendas/bfa050311.pdf |website=City of Houston |access-date=3 January 2025}} and the Housing and Community Development Committee,{{cite web |title=Housing and Community Development Committee, Agenda (January 21, 2010) |url=https://www.houstontx.gov/citysec/committee/prioragendas/hcd012110.pdf |website=City of Houston |access-date=3 January 2025}} among others.
In 2010, a police officer claimed Johnson failed to stop his vehicle when he tried to pull him over for speeding. He was arrested and charged with evading arrest, and later a grand jury cleared him of the charges, deciding there was not evidence that he did anything wrong.{{cite news |last1=Johnson |first1=Laurie |title=Grand Jury Clears Houston Councilmember |url=https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/2010/10/11/23482/grand-jury-clears-houston-councilmember/ |access-date=3 January 2025 |work=Houston Public Media (NPR and PBS Houston affiliate) |date=11 October 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250103212931/https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/2010/10/11/23482/grand-jury-clears-houston-councilmember/ |archive-date=3 January 2025}}{{cite news |title=Grand jury: No evading arrest charges for Houston City Councilman Jarvis Johnson |url=https://www.khou.com/article/news/grand-jury-no-evading-arrest-charges-for-houston-city-councilman-jarvis-johnson/285-342002265 |access-date=3 January 2025 |work=KHOU 11 (CBS Houston affiliate) |date=11 October 2010}}
=2010 U.S. House of Representatives campaign=
On January 5, 2010, Johnson announced his candidacy for Texas's 18th Congressional District seat, a seat held by incumbent Sheila Jackson Lee.{{Cite web
| title = Council Member Jarvis Johnson officially announces he is running for Houston's 18th Congressional District seat
| date = 6 January 2010
| access-date = 2010-02-15
| url = http://jarvisjohnson.blogspot.com/2010/01/council-member-jarvis-johnson.html
}}
Jackson Lee was in her third term on the Houston City Council in 1994 when she beat incumbent U.S. Representative Craig Washington on the theme that he was out of touch with his district. When Johnson announced his candidacy in 2010, he had just won a third term to a council seat within the 18th Congressional District. The congressional district encompasses much of urban Houston and is about 40% black with the remainder split between whites and Hispanics. It accounts for about a quarter of the city's more than 2 million residents.{{Cite web
| title = US Rep Sheila Jackson Lee gets rare challenge
| access-date = 2010-02-15
| url = http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/6859104.html
}} {{Dead link|date=October 2010|bot=H3llBot}}
=Texas House of Representatives (2016–2025)=
Johnson ran in the 2016 primary election, advanced to the runoff election, and won a special election called to determine an interim representative for 2016 and won the primary election runoff. Since he was unopposed in November 2016, Johnson winning the special election and runoff meant he was the District 139 state representative who would succeed Sylvester Turner. After 26 years, Turner stepped down from his state seat to become Houston's mayor.
Johnson won the May 7 special election, with 85% of the vote, to finish out the remainder of Turner's term as state representative of District 139. Turner swore him in,{{Cite web|url=http://www.aframnews.com/honorable-sylvester-turner-to-swear-in-jarvis-johnson-as-state-rep-for-texas-district-139/|title=Honorable Sylvester Turner to Swear in Jarvis Johnson as State Rep. for Texas District 139 – African American News|website=www.aframnews.com|access-date=2016-05-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171006062427/http://www.aframnews.com/honorable-sylvester-turner-to-swear-in-jarvis-johnson-as-state-rep-for-texas-district-139/|archive-date=2017-10-06|url-status=dead}} allowing Johnson to serve through December and immediately, fully assume former Turner's seniority status and his roles that include vice-chairman of the House Appropriations Committee.
When Johnson ran for the Texas Senate, Charlene Ward Johnson won the Democratic primary to replace him. She ran unopposed, to be the district's state representative in 2025.{{cite news |last1=Hansen |first1=Holly |title=Charlene Ward Johnson Wins Democratic Primary Runoff to Replace Rep. Jarvis Johnson in Texas House |url=https://thetexan.news/elections/2024/charlene-ward-johnson-wins-democratic-primary-runoff-to-replace-rep-jarvis-johnson-in-texas-house/article_e61bf176-1dd7-11ef-9be7-6372b24ce216.html |access-date=3 January 2025 |work=The Texan |date=29 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240726184541/https://thetexan.news/elections/2024/charlene-ward-johnson-wins-democratic-primary-runoff-to-replace-rep-jarvis-johnson-in-texas-house/article_e61bf176-1dd7-11ef-9be7-6372b24ce216.html |archive-date=26 July 2024}}
==Legislation==
Johnson advocated for education funding reform for Texas' HBCUs, noting disparity between them and other higher education institutions.{{cite web|url=https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/politics/inside-politics/texas-politics/state-lawmaker-fighting-for-hbcu-funding-parity-inside-texas-politics/287-13767546-bdfb-49e7-a5d4-4f367b2c0827|title=State lawmaker fighting for HBCU funding parity|date=April 23, 2022|access-date=March 9, 2024|last=McCardel|first=Michael|website=WFAA}}{{cite web|url=https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/HBCU-FUNDING-LEGE-16272089.php|title=History shows Texas skimps on Prairie View A&M's land-grant funds|date=June 26, 2021|access-date=March 9, 2024|last=Britto|first=Brittany|website=The Houston Chronicle}}
Johnson was the sole member to speak against HB 2908, a law codifying protections for police and peace officers, strongly opposing the bill on the grounds that it could make questioning an officer an act of resistance and therefore a hate crime.{{Cite journal |title=Blue Lives Matter and Hate Crime Law |journal=Race and Justice |last=Mason |first=Gail |date=April 2022 |issue=2 |volume=12 |pages=411-430 |via=SagePub |doi=10.1177/2153368720933665}}
For three consecutive legislative sessions (in 2019, 2021, and 2023), Johnson filed bills to end Confederate Heroes Day as a state holiday. The bills did not make it out of the House State Affairs Committee, and Speaker Dade Phelan who chaired the committee did not bring up the bill for a vote.{{cite news |last1=Barragan |first1=James |title=Texas lawmakers want to end state holiday commemorating Confederate veterans |url=https://www.texastribune.org/2023/01/18/texas-confederate-heroes-day-holiday-bill/ |access-date=3 January 2025 |work=The Texas Tribune |date=18 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241005105950/https://www.texastribune.org/2023/01/18/texas-confederate-heroes-day-holiday-bill/ |archive-date=5 October 2024}}
Johnson also filed multiple bills to apply pollution limits for concrete plants, which affect the air quality for districts such as the ones he represented, but these bills did not pass.{{cite news |last1=Erin |first1=Douglas |title=As Texas grows, communities face an unwelcome neighbor: concrete companies. Homeowners have few options. |url=https://www.texastribune.org/2020/11/24/texas-concrete-batch-plants/ |access-date=3 January 2025 |work=The Texas Tribune |date=24 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240919135234/https://www.texastribune.org/2020/11/24/texas-concrete-batch-plants/ |archive-date=19 September 2024}}{{cite news |last1=Martinez |first1=Alejandra |title=Texans affected by pollution from concrete plants push state agency to tighten regulations |url=https://www.texastribune.org/2022/11/18/texas-concrete-batch-plants-tceq-bills/ |work=The Texas Tribune |date=18 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240920060828/https://www.texastribune.org/2022/11/18/texas-concrete-batch-plants-tceq-bills/ |archive-date=20 September 2024}}
=2024 Texas Senate campaign=
Johnson announced his campaign for the Texas Senate in the 15th district, the seat vacated by incumbent Democrat John Whitmire upon winning the 2023 Houston mayoral election. He placed first in the March 5 primary with 36% of the vote, advancing to a May runoff with Molly Cook.{{cite web|url=https://www.houstonpress.com/news/state-rep-jarvis-johnson-leads-in-early-voting-to-fill-whitmires-seat-17609980|title=Frontrunners Jarvis Johnson and Molly Cook Are In A Runoff For Former State Senator John Whitmire's Seat|date=March 5, 2024|access-date=March 9, 2024|last=Bugenhagen|first=Faith|website=Houston Press}} He was defeated in the runoff and in the Democraty primary to a full term by Cook.{{cite web|url=https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/houston/article/molly-cook-jarvis-johnson-texas-senate-19447235.php|title=ER nurse Molly Cook defeats Jarvis Johnson in race for John Whitmire's Texas Senate seat|last=Cheng|first=Yilun|date=May 29, 2024|access-date=May 29, 2024|website=Houston Chronicle}}
Electoral history
=2005=
{{Election box begin no party | title=Houston City Council District B Election 2005{{Cite web
| title = City of Houston eGovernment
| access-date = 2010-01-19
| url = http://www.houstontx.gov/citysec/elections/110805.pdf
}}}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner =
| candidate = Willie J. Hunter
| votes = 1,049
| percentage = 7.21%
| change =
}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner =
| candidate = Tommie Ruth Allen
| votes = 1,456
| percentage = 10.01%
| change =
}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner =
| candidate = Anna Gray
| votes = 426
| percentage = 2.93%
| change =
}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner =
| candidate = Charles A. Ingram
| votes = 1,004
| percentage = 6.90%
| change =
}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner = ✓
| candidate = Felicia Galloway-Hall
| votes = 5,462
| percentage = 37.54%
| change =
}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner = ✓
| candidate = Jarvis Johnson
| votes = 3,830
| percentage = 26.33%
| change =
}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner =
| candidate = Angle S. Bush
| votes = 326
| percentage = 2.24%
| change =
}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner =
| candidate = Robin German-Curtis
| votes = 995
| percentage = 6.84%
| change =
}}
{{Election box end}}
{{Election box begin no party | title=Houston City Council District B Election 2005, Runoff{{Cite web
| title = City of Houston eGovernment
| access-date = 2009-07-16
| url = http://www.houstontx.gov/citysec/elections/121005.pdf
}}}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner =
| candidate = Felicia Galloway-Hall
| votes = 2,146
| percentage = 39.67%
| change =
}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner = ✓
| candidate = Jarvis Johnson
| votes = 3,264
| percentage = 60.33%
| change =
}}
{{Election box end}}
=2007=
{{Election box begin no party | title=Houston City Council District B Election 2007{{Cite web
| title = City of Houston eGovernment
| access-date = 2010-01-19
| url = http://www.houstontx.gov/citysec/elections/110607.pdf
}}}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner = ✓
| candidate = Jarvis Johnson
| votes = 8,254
| percentage = 76.95%
| change =
}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner =
| candidate = Kenneth Perkins
| votes = 2,473
| percentage = 23.05%
| change =
}}
{{Election box end}}
=2009=
{{Election box begin no party | title=Houston City Council District B Election 2009{{Cite web
| title = City of Houston eGovernment
| access-date = 2009-07-16
| url = http://www.houstontx.gov/citysec/elections/110309.pdf
}}}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner =
| candidate = Roger Bowden
| votes = 2,204
| percentage = 18.01%
| change =
}}
{{Election box candidate no party with winner
| winner = ✓
| candidate = Jarvis Johnson
| votes = 10,033
| percentage = 81.99%
| change =
}}
{{Election box end}}
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
- [https://www.texastribune.org/directory/jarvis-johnson/ Jarvis Johnson at the Texas Tribune]
- [https://www.jarvisfortexas.com/ Jarvis Johnson's official website]
{{Texas House of Representatives}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Jarvis}}
Category:21st-century African-American politicians
Category:20th-century African-American politicians
Category:African-American state legislators in Texas
Category:Democratic Party members of the Texas House of Representatives
Category:Houston City Council members