Mike Johanns

Johanns was born in Osage, Iowa, the son of Adeline Lucy (née Royek) and John Robert Johanns. His father was of German and some Luxembourgish ancestry, and his maternal grandparents immigrated from Poland.{{cite web | url=http://www.c-spanvideo.org/appearance/597986386 | title =EXPRESSING SYMPATHY FOR THE PEOPLE OF POLAND | publisher =c-spanvideo.org | date =April 14, 2010}}{{cite book|last=Barone|first=Michael|title=Almanac of American Politics|year=2011|publisher=The University of Chicago Press|isbn=9780226038087|pages=980}} He grew up living and working on his family's farm.{{cite web | url=http://globegazette.com/mcpress/news/local/united-states-senator-mike-johanns-will-give-keynote-address-at/article_30c3a08f-e1ca-50f4-adb4-b239d6bbd15e.html | title =United States Senator Mike Johanns will give keynote address at CRC | publisher =globegazette.com | author =David Namanny | date =April 20, 2010 | access-date =February 18, 2013}}

He graduated from Osage Community High School in 1968 and went on to study at Saint Mary's University of Minnesota in Winona, where he received his Bachelor of Arts in Communications in 1971.{{cite web | url =http://www.omaha.com/article/20130218/NEWS/130219533/1685 | title =Mike Johanns won't seek another Senate term | publisher =omaha.com | author =Allysa Schukar | access-date =February 18, 2013 | url-status =dead | archive-url =https://archive.today/20130411143456/http://www.omaha.com/article/20130218/NEWS/130219533/1685 | archive-date =April 11, 2013 }} Johanns earned his Juris Doctor from Creighton University School of Law, and joined the Nebraska State Bar Association in 1974.{{cite web | url=http://journalstar.com/news/mike-johanns-from-iowa-to-washington-a-timeline/article_23485d8b-2a4d-58df-996c-2f4d26509914.html | title =Mike Johanns: From Iowa to Washington, a timeline | publisher =journalstar.com | date =December 1, 2004 | access-date =February 18, 2013}}

After his graduation, he clerked for Nebraska Supreme Court Judge Hale McCown from 1974 to 1975, before practicing law for Cronin and Hannon in O'Neill, Nebraska from 1975 to 1976.{{cite news | url=http://www.reviewjournal.com/db/election.results?pageType=bios&pageID=gne0rep | title =Nebraska – Biography Campaign Finance Summary Top PAC Donations Michael Owen Johanns |agency =Associated Press | newspaper =Las Vegas Review-Journal | date =February 18, 2013}} He was a partner at Nelson, Johanns, Morris, Holdeman, and Titus, a law firm he founded in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1976, where he practiced until 1991.

Johanns served on the Lancaster County Board from 1983 to 1987 as a Democrat. In 1988, he was elected as a Republican to the Lincoln City Council, where he served from 1989 to 1991. On May 7, 1991, he was elected the 47th Mayor of Lincoln, defeating incumbent Mayor Bill Harris, with 54% of the vote.{{cite web | url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=121842 | title =Lincoln, NE Mayor | publisher =ourcampaigns.com | date =August 26, 2004}} He took office as Mayor on May 20, 1991.{{cite news|title=Council elects officers as new leaders take over|newspaper=Lincoln Star|date=May 21, 1991|access-date=March 30, 2023|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/311679978}} In 1995, Johanns won reelection with no opposition, becoming the first Mayor of Lincoln to do so since the 1950s.{{cite web | url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=121843 | title =Lincoln, NE Mayor | publisher =ourcampaigns.com | date =August 24, 2004}} After being elected governor of Nebraska, he was succeeded as mayor by Dale Young, who was appointed by the Lincoln City Council.{{cite web|title=Lincoln Police Department Annual Report 1998|url=http://lincoln.ne.gov/city/police/annual/1998.pdf}}{{cite web | url=http://www.creighton.edu/fileadmin/user/creighton-magazine/archive/PDFs/1999_CUmag_F99.pdf | title =Nebraska Gov. Mike Johanns, JD'74, is the first Creighton University alum elected to a state governorship. And he is the first Roman Catholic to serve as governor of Nebraska. Johanns, a Republican, defeated Democrat Bill Hoppner in the November 1998 governor's race. Prior to that, Johanns served two terms as mayor of Lincoln. Creighton University Magazine Executive Editor Steve Kline interviewed Gov. Johanns at the Governor's Mansion in Lincoln for the following story | publisher =creighton.edu | author =Steve Kline | access-date =February 18, 2013}}

{{Main|1998 Nebraska gubernatorial election}}

Johanns began campaigning early in Nebraska's 1998 gubernatorial election, holding his first campaign event in October 1995. The early start led to a slow, steady build-up in name recognition and organizational support, and an advantage of small donors over his Republican opponents, Nebraska State Auditor John Breslow and U.S. Representative Jon Lynn Christensen.{{cite web | url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=121836 | title =NE Governor – R Primary | publisher =ourcampaigns.com | date =August 24, 2004 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Johanns visited all of Nebraska's 93 counties, traveling over 100,000 miles.{{cite news | url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/politics/2008-11-04-1780101988_x.htm | title =Former GOP ag secretary Johanns wins in Nebraska | publisher =usatoday.com | author =Anna Jo Bratton | date =November 4, 2008 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Christensen, a two-term representative who promised not to serve more than three terms in the House, was seen as a surprise candidate in the gubernatorial election, as he had to give up his seat on the powerful House Ways and Means Committee.{{cite web | url=http://www.nationaljournal.com/pubs/almanac/1998/ne02.htm | title =The Almanac of American Politics 1998 Nebraska: Second District Rep. Jon Christensen (R) | work =nationaljournal.com | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Christensen (who saw backing from the Christian right), and Breslow ran their campaigns on a staunch social conservative message and were seen as trying to "outconservative" and outdistance one another, while Johanns was seen as an attractive candidate for moderate voters.{{cite web | url=http://wickersgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Accentuating-the-Positive-in-Nebraska.pdf | title =Accentuating the Positive in Nebraska's GOP Race for Governor | publisher =wickersgroup.com | author =Bob Wickers | date =July 1, 1998 | access-date =February 18, 2013}}{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/05/07/us/battle-of-conservatives-in-nebraska-s-primary.html | title =Battle of Conservatives In Nebraska's Primary | newspaper =nytimes.com | author =Dirk Johnson | date =May 7, 1998 | access-date =February 18, 2013}}

Christensen was seen as the early frontrunner, though his lead fell dramatically in the final weeks after he made public comments that he signed an affidavit after he and his first wife divorced, saying that her adultery broke up their marriage.{{cite web | url=https://apnews.com/b5fe8c0ba73099d2a2f07faa6faeba8a | title =NEBRASKA GOVERNOR'S RACE TIGHTENS |website =apnewsarchive.com | agency =Associated Press | author =Barry Bedlan | date =May 7, 1998 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} He also saw backlash from comments he made about his second wife (Tara Dawn Holland, Miss America 1997), that he got her to swear that she was a virgin who was "saving herself for marriage."{{cite news | url=http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1998/05/18/time/carlson.html | title =Washington Diary Facing A Dobson's Choice | publisher =cnn.com | author =Margaret Carlson | date =May 25, 1998 | access-date =February 18, 2013}}{{cite web | url=http://www.nationaljournal.com/pubs/almanac/2004/people/ne/negv.htm | title =Almanac Nebraska Gov. Mike Johanns (R) | work =nationaljournal.com | date =July 14, 2003 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} His campaign also vigorously attacked Johanns in a flier for allowing "obscene and racist" broadcasts to air on Lincoln's public access cable channel.{{cite web | url=https://apnews.com/b523675fc6abbded0a2ae805f23967e8 | title =GOP JOHANNS WINS NEB. GOV. PRIMARY | website =apnewsarchive.com | agency=Associated Press | author =Barry Bedlan | date =May 12, 1998 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} The broadcasts showed a man urinating in public; though Johanns tried to stop the program, the airing was protected by a federal lawsuit.{{cite news | url=http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Lincoln-mayor-wins-Nebraska-primary-race-3090647.php | title =Lincoln mayor wins Nebraska primary race | newspaper =San Francisco Chronicle | date =May 13, 1998 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} The flier was condemned by Republican members of Nebraska's congressional delegation, with then-Senator Chuck Hagel saying that "Nobody in the Republican Party of Nebraska can be proud of Jon Christensen's conduct. I hope the people of the state will get out and vote and register their feelings on the conduct of this campaign." Hagel also added that his tactics "embarrassed Nebraska."{{cite magazine | url=https://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/11/03/081103fa_fact_bruck | title =THE POLITICAL SCENE ODD MAN OUT Chuck Hagel's Republican exile. | magazine =The New Yorker | author =Connie Bruck | date =November 3, 2008 | access-date =February 18, 2013}}

Though the race was seen as a "dead heat" the day before the primary,{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/05/10/us/political-briefing-primary-in-nebraska-is-called-a-dead-heat.html?n=Top%2fReference%2fTimes%20Topics%2fSubjects%2fP%2fPrimaries | title =Political Briefing; Primary in Nebraska Is Called a Dead Heat | newspaper =nytimes.com | author =B. Drummond Ayres Jr. | date =May 10, 1998 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Johanns won with 40% of the vote, to Breslow's 29% and Christensen's 28%.{{cite news | url=http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1998/05/13/nebraska.results/ | title =Nebraska Primary Results – May 12, 1998 By Congressional Quarterly | publisher =cnn.com | date =May 12, 1998 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} The primary was seen as one of the most expensive in Nebraska history, with Breslow spending $3.8 million ($2.5 million of his own money), Christensen spending $1.8 million and Johanns spending $1.7 million.

Incumbent Ben Nelson, a popular Democrat in the staunchly red state, was term-limited after serving two terms as governor, leaving the Democratic field open. Bill Hoppner won the Democratic nomination, defeating lawyer and former member of the Nebraska Legislature Jim McFarland.{{cite web | url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=121838 | title =NE Governor – D Primary | publisher =ourcampaigns.com | date =August 24, 2004 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Hoppner, an attorney who previously served as the chief of staff to senators J. James Exon and Bob Kerrey, had never won an election before; he had run for governor and was defeated by Nelson in the 1990 primary.{{cite web | url=https://apnews.com/d6ca65c74d6382abf1841ea3fb4df369 | title =Nebraska Governor: From Rural Town to Statehouse| publisher =Associated Press | author =Maryann Mrowca | date =November 7, 1990 | access-date =February 18, 2013}}

On November 3, 1998, Johanns and his running mate, David I. Maurstad, defeated Hoppner and his running mate, Pam Bataillon, in the general election, by a margin of 54% to 46%.{{cite web | url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?year=1998&fips=31&off=5&elect=0&f=0 | title =1998 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Nebraska | website =uselectionatlas.org | access-date =February 18, 2013}}{{cite web | url=http://www.theindependent.com/news/johanns-cruises-to-victory/article_36d556d1-5586-5841-b29c-35670adccc44.html | title =Johanns cruises to victory | publisher =theindependent.com | author =Kevin O'Hanlon | date =November 4, 1998 | access-date =February 18, 2013}}

{{Main|2002 Nebraska gubernatorial election}}

Johanns won reelection in 2002 by a landslide, defeating Democrat Stormy Dean by a margin of 69% to 27%, thus becoming the first Republican governor of Nebraska to be reelected since Victor E. Anderson in 1956.

File:Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns.jpg

During his first term, Johanns focused on direct property tax relief.{{cite web | url =http://nlc1.nlc.state.ne.us/docs/pilot/pubs/sosfiles/StateofState1999.pdf | title =LEGISLATIVE JOURNAL STATE OF THE STATE ADDRESS | publisher =state.ne.us | date =January 27, 1999 | access-date =February 18, 2013 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20130515085123/http://nlc1.nlc.state.ne.us/docs/pilot/pubs/sosfiles/StateofState1999.pdf | archive-date =May 15, 2013 | url-status =dead }} He succeeded in enacting a total of $85 million in such relief.{{cite web | url=http://www.nga.org/cms/home/governors/past-governors-bios/page_nebraska/col2-content/main-content-list/title_johanns_mike.html | title =Nebraska Governor Mike Johanns | publisher =nga.org | access-date =February 18, 2013}}

Johanns was a supporter of Initiative 413, amending Nebraska's constitution to limit state government spending, and adjusting tax revenue increases to the rate of inflation.{{cite web | url=http://schoolfinance.ncsa.org/1998-general-election-initiative-413 | title =1998 General Election: Initiative 413 The Complete History of the Nebraska Tax Equity and Educational Opportunities Support Act (TEEOSA) Policy History Navigation | publisher =schoolfinance.ncsa.org | access-date =February 18, 2013}} In 2002 Johanns signed legislation raising the state's cigarette tax by 50 cents per pack; from 34 to 84 cents.{{cite web | url=http://archive.tobacco.org/news/87226.html | title =Johanns Asks For Cigarette Tax Hike, School Aid Cut | agency=Associated Press| publisher =tobacco.org | author =Scoot Bauer | date =March 1, 2002 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Johanns proposed another 20 cents increase in cigarette taxes, saying that "I don't think you're going to get much debate that medical costs are higher when you smoke. Cigarette and tobacco use may be a choice, but every one of us pays for its use, either with our health or our pocketbooks, or both."{{cite web | url =http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/research/factsheets/pdf/0308.pdf | title =BIPARTISAN SUPPORT FOR SIGNIFICANT CIGARETTE TAX INCREASES 2002 TO 2011 | publisher =tobaccofreekids.org | author =Omaha World-Herald | author-link =Omaha World-Herald | year =2002 | access-date =February 18, 2013 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20130526132453/http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/research/factsheets/pdf/0308.pdf | archive-date =May 26, 2013 | url-status =dead }}

Johanns led agriculture trade missions to Japan, China, Taiwan, Australia, South Korea and Brazil.{{cite news | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A28011-2004Dec2.html | title =Johanns Nominated for Agriculture Secretary Nebraska Governor Will Replace Veneman | newspaper =Washington Post | author =William Branigin, Jim VandeHei | date =December 2, 2004 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} He signed legislation increasing state gasoline taxes by 1.25 cents for ethanol incentive funding, raising $1.5 million annually for Nebraska's Ethanol Production Incentive Cash Fund.{{cite web | url=http://www.nebraskalegislature.gov/update/year-end%20issues/2004.pdf | title =98th Legislature Second Session 2004 Session Review | publisher =nebraskalegislature.gov | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Johanns served as the chairman of Governors' Ethanol Coalition in 2001.{{cite news | url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aLYUCNv6pkG8 | title =Bush Taps Nebraska's Johanns as Agriculture Secretary (Update1) | publisher =bloomberg.com | author =Daniel Goldstein | date =December 2, 2004 | access-date =February 18, 2013}}

Johanns was known for his strong stance on vetoing bills. In 1999 Johanns vetoed 26 bills in only five days, more than any previous governor in Nebraska history.{{cite news | url=http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/j/mike_johanns/index.html?offset=0&s=newest | title =Mike Johanns Navigator A list of resources about Mike Johanns as selected by researchers and editors of The New York Times. | publisher =topics.nytimes.com | date =July 29, 2010 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} In 2003 Johanns vetoed the entire $5.4 billion two-year Nebraska state budget. He said that he "could not accept a budget that raised taxes to grow government at a time when the state must cut spending," and called for a nearly 10% cut in every state government program.{{cite web | url=http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2003/05/27/Neb-lawmakers-may-override-budget-veto/UPI-33371054048707/ | publisher =upi.com | title =Neb. lawmakers may override budget veto | date =May 27, 2003 | access-date =February 18, 2013}}{{cite web | url=http://schoolfinance.ncsa.org/2003-legislative-session | title =The 2003 Legislative Session The Complete History of the Nebraska Tax Equity and Educational Opportunities Support Act (TEEOSA) Policy History Navigation | publisher =schoolfinance.ncsa.org | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Johanns vetoed legislation increasing the pay of members of the Nebraska Legislature, though the veto was overridden by the legislature; he also vetoed legislation authorizing teacher salary increases.{{cite web | url=http://fremonttribune.com/teacher-pay-hike-faces-veto/article_62c992ae-f3b2-5bdc-b552-0d9a24d7f596.html | title =Teacher pay hike faces veto | publisher =fremonttribune.com | author =Kristi Bender | date =April 10, 2001 | access-date =February 18, 2013}}

During the 1999 legislative session, the Nebraska Legislature passed a moratorium of executions in a 27 to 21 vote, becoming the first state in the nation to send such a proposal to the governor's desk.{{cite web | url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1999/05/27/execution-moratorium-vetoed-by-gop-governor/ | title =Execution Moratorium Vetoed By Gop Governor | publisher =orlandosentinel.com | date =May 27, 1999 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} The bill set bans on all executions for two years, while a study to see if the death penalty was being applied fairly in the state took place.{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/05/21/us/legislature-of-nebraska-votes-pause-in-executions.html?ref=mikejohanns | title =Legislature Of Nebraska Votes Pause In Executions | newspaper =nytimes.com | author =Dirk Johnson | date =May 21, 1999 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Though the bill prevented executions from taking place, it did not exempt the sentencing of the death penalty in new cases.{{cite news | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-may-21-mn-39466-story.html | title =Nebraska Execution Moratorium OKd | work =Los Angeles Times | agency =Associated Press | date =May 21, 1999 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Johanns, who is a proponent of the capital punishment, vetoed the bill a week after its passage; calling the bill "poor public policy" that would "at a minimum be utilized to advance further unnecessary criminal appeals by those currently sentenced to death row in Nebraska."{{cite news | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-may-27-mn-41554-story.html | title =Nebraska Governor Vetoes Moratorium on Executions Legislation: He rejects plea from pope, saying the measure would only cause more pain for victims' families. Legislature sets override vote for today. | work =Los Angeles Times | author =Henry Weinstein | date =May 27, 1999 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} The veto of the bill was condemned by the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Bar Association and Pope John Paul II.{{cite web | url=https://www.aclu.org/capital-punishment/aclu-nebraska-says-study-still-needed-despite-governors-veto-death-penalty-morato | title =ACLU of Nebraska Says Study Still Needed Despite Governor's Veto of Death Penalty Moratorium | publisher =American Civil Liberties Union | author =aclu.org | date =May 26, 1999 | access-date =February 18, 2013}}

In 1999, Johanns saw criticism from the groups People For the American Way and the American Civil Liberties Union for signing a proclamation declaring May 22, "March for Jesus Day," in honor of a fundamentalist Christian group in Nebraska.{{cite web | url=http://www.theindependent.com/news/johanns-supports-march-for-jesus/article_afd3ebdb-89ee-569e-9495-b9cbfa8f6bd4.html | title =Johanns supports March for Jesus | publisher =theindependent.com | author =Molly Wood | date =May 6, 1999 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Critiques said that Johanns was "violating the neutrality of religions that is required of his office. He was endorsing Christianity over all other religions, sending an impermissible message to Nebraskans of other faiths or of no faith that their beliefs are disfavored by the Government."{{cite book|last=Dunn|first=Paul R.|title=Touching Raw Nerves: A Liberal Yankee Columnist Takes on Conservative Dixie|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oBzQBetTzNoC&pg=PA52|access-date=March 23, 2014|date=January 1, 2004|publisher=University Press of America|isbn=978-0-7618-2877-8|page=52}} Johanns also endorsed "Back to the Bible Day," though he refused to issue a proclamation for Earth Religion Awareness Day, a day requested by Wicca groups.{{cite web | url=http://www.nationaljournal.com/pubs/almanac/2002/people/ne/negv.htm | title =Almanac Gov. Mike Johanns (R) | work =nationaljournal.com | date =June 15, 2001 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Johanns said that "I wouldn't hesitate to sign a proclamation for the Jewish faith, Hinduism, whatever. So long as it doesn't require me to sign something I personally don't agree with."{{cite web | url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Inauguration/story?id=298086 | title =Profile: Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns | publisher =abcnews.go.com | date =November 1, 2005 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Johanns previously refused to sign a proclamation for LGBT Pride in 1997, citing his Christianity.{{cite news |author= |title=Mayor's action alienates gay, lesbian population |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/297669564/ |work=Lincoln Journal Star |date=August 14, 1997 |access-date=October 10, 2020}}

Johanns twice served as the chair of the National Governors Association's Committee on Economic Development and Commerce from 2000 to 2001 and from 2002 to 2003.{{cite news | url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/johanns-picked-to-head-usda | title =Johanns Picked to Head USDA | publisher =Fox News | date =December 2, 2004 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} In July 2001, he was unanimously approved by the Board of Directors of the Export-Import Bank of the United States to serve on the banks Advisory Committee, and in 2003 served as the chairman of the Governor's Biotechnology Partnership.{{cite web | url =http://www.exim.gov/newsandevents/releases/2006andprior/2001/nebraska-governor-mike-johanns-named-to-ex-im-bank-2001-advisory-committee.cfm | title =NEBRASKA GOVERNOR MIKE JOHANNS NAMED TO EX-IM BANK 2001 ADVISORY COMMITTEE | publisher =exim.gov | date =July 20, 2001 | access-date =February 18, 2013 | url-status =dead | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20130306051911/http://www.exim.gov/newsandevents/releases/2006andprior/2001/nebraska-governor-mike-johanns-named-to-ex-im-bank-2001-advisory-committee.cfm | archive-date =March 6, 2013 }}{{cite web | url =http://www.fwa.org/event/Speaker_profiles.pdf | title =Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns | publisher =Financial Women's Association | author =fwa.org | access-date =February 18, 2013 | url-status =dead | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20061211092226/http://www.fwa.org/event/Speaker_profiles.pdf | archive-date =December 11, 2006 }}

Johanns succeeded Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack as chair of the Midwestern Governors Association in 2002.{{cite web|url=http://www.midwesterngovernors.org/pastchairs.htm |title=Former Chairs of the Midwestern Governors Association |publisher=midwesterngovernors.org |access-date=February 18, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130501180704/http://www.midwesterngovernors.org/pastchairs.htm |archive-date=May 1, 2013 }}

File:Mike Johanns resignation-Bush.jpg

On December 2, 2004, Johanns was nominated by President George W. Bush to replace outgoing Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman.{{cite web | url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2004/12/20041202-4.html | title =Personnel Announcement | publisher =whitehouse.archives.gov | author =White House Office of the Press Secretary | date =December 2, 2004 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} As a result, he scrapped plans to run against Democratic U.S. Senator Ben Nelson (his predecessor as governor) in the 2006 election. In his announcement nominating Johanns as agriculture secretary, President Bush explained that he chose him to replace Veneman for his support of ethanol and biodiesel and for his knowledge in foreign trade; calling him "a man of action and of complete integrity."{{cite news | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A28542-2004Dec2.html | title =Transcript: Bush Selects Johanns for Agriculture Secretary | work =washingtonpost.com | date =December 2, 2004 | access-date =February 18, 2013}} Johanns was confirmed in a voice vote by the Senate on January 20, 2005, hours after Bush's second inauguration.{{cite web | url=https://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/six_column_table/Bush_cabinet.htm | title =George W. Bush Cabinet Nominations | publisher =senate.gov | access-date =February 18, 2013}} He tendered his resignation as Governor of Nebraska on that day, and was sworn in the next day.{{cite news | url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/washington/2005-01-20-senate-cabinet-confirmations_x.htm?csp=34 | title =Senate confirms two Bush cabinet nominees | publisher =usatoday.com | date =January 20, 2005 | access-date =February 18, 2013}}

The Department of Agriculture under Johanns received criticism for being too slow to perform additional tests on cows suspected of having mad cow disease.{{cite news|title=U.S. will now conduct mad cow test it called unnecessary|url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/states/2005-06-26-mad-cow-extra-test_x.htm|access-date=August 14, 2014|work=USA Today|date=June 26, 2005}}

{{Main|2008 United States Senate election in Nebraska}}

On September 20, 2007, Johanns resigned as the Secretary of Agriculture and announced on October 10, 2007 that he would run for the United States Senate seat vacated by Senator Chuck Hagel.{{cite news | last = Abbott | first = Charles | title = Johanns resigns as agriculture secretary | publisher = Boston.com | date = September 20, 2007 | url = https://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/09/20/bush_to_announce_johanns_resigning_as_agriculture_secretary/ | access-date = October 10, 2008 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080620150153/http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/09/20/bush_to_announce_johanns_resigning_as_agriculture_secretary/ |archive-date = June 20, 2008}} On November 4, 2008, he was elected to the United States Senate,{{cite web | last = Walton | first = Don | title = Johanns will enter Senate race | work=Lincoln Journal Star | date = September 19, 2007 | url = http://www.journalstar.com/articles/2007/09/19/news/politics/doc46f0a18c6b645363895850.txt | access-date = October 10, 2008}} defeating Democratic nominee Scott Kleeb in the general election.

Johanns' time in the Senate was low-key: he never appeared on one of the Sunday morning talk shows. He voted against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, and opposed cap-and-trade legislation. He was a member of the "Gang of Eight" that tried to negotiate a federal deficit reduction deal in 2011 and was pivotal in re-routing the proposed route of the Keystone Pipeline.{{cite web|url=http://www.omaha.com/news/as-career-winds-down-mike-johanns-turns-reflective/article_6be5ca71-2fe6-5dc8-ad79-5d83477bceee.html |title=As career winds down, Mike Johanns turns reflective |publisher=Omaha.com |date=February 23, 2013 |access-date=September 26, 2014}}

Johanns received an award from the National Multiple Sclerosis Society for his work to support funding for autoimmune disease research.{{cite news|title=LEND A HAND: Bachus honored for funding multiple sclerosis research|url=http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/article/20141011/NEWS/141019884/1007/news?Title=LEND-A-HAND-Bachus-honored-for-funding-multiple-sclerosis-research|access-date=November 7, 2014|newspaper=Tuscaloosa News|date=October 11, 2014}}

• Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry
• Subcommittee on Energy, Science and Technology
• Subcommittee on Domestic and Foreign Marketing, Inspection, and Plant and Animal Health (Ranking Member)
• Subcommittee on Production, Income Protection and Price Support
• Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
• Subcommittee on Financial Institutions
• Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development
• Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance, and Investment, Ranking Member
• Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation
• Subcommittee on Aviation Operations, Safety, and Security
• Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet
• Subcommittee on Competitiveness, Innovation, and Export Promotion
• Subcommittee on Science and Space
• Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security
• Committee on Veterans' Affairs
• Committee on Indian Affairs
• Impeachment Trial Committee on the Articles against Judge G. Thomas Porteous, Jr.{{cite press release

|title = Senate Leaders Announce Bipartisan Committee To Investigate Judge G. Thomas Porteous

|publisher = Senate Democratic Caucus

|date = March 17, 2010

|url = http://democrats.senate.gov/newsroom/record.cfm?id=323186&

|access-date = April 29, 2010

|url-status = dead

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100505051449/http://democrats.senate.gov/newsroom/record.cfm?id=323186&

|archive-date = May 5, 2010

}}

• International Conservation Caucus
• Parkinson's Disease Caucus (co-chair)
• Sportsmen's Caucus

File:Secretary Pompeo Delivers Remarks at the Millennium Challenge Corporation Board Meeting (49194973013).jpg, 2019]]

In December 2015, President Barack Obama nominated Johanns to be a member of the board of directors of the Millennium Challenge Corporation. This nomination was confirmed by a voice vote of the U.S. Senate in February 2016.{{cite web | title = PN1040 — Michael O. Johanns — Millennium Challenge Corporation | website=U.S. Congress | date=February 11, 2016 | url = https://www.congress.gov/nomination/114th-congress/1040 | access-date = March 15, 2019}} In March 2019, President Donald Trump nominated him for a second term on the board.{{cite web | title = PN513 — Michael O. Johanns — Millennium Challenge Corporation | website=U.S. Congress | url = https://www.congress.gov/nomination/116th-congress/513 | access-date = March 15, 2019}}

Johanns married his first wife, Connie Johanns, in 1972. They had two children together: a son, Justin and a daughter, Michaela.{{cite web|url=http://www.nndb.com/people/393/000044261/|title=Mike Johanns|access-date=November 15, 2014}} He also has five grandchildren.{{cite book|title=Official Congressional Directory, 2009–2010: 111th Congress, Convened January 2009|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9nL2Bhq3UYIC&pg=PA159|access-date=March 23, 2014|date=January 2010|publisher=Government Printing Office|isbn=978-0-16-083727-2|page=159}} Johanns and his wife divorced in 1985, and in 1986 he married Stephanie Armitage, a former Lancaster County Commissioner and Nebraska state senator.{{cite web | url =http://nebraska.statepaper.com/vnews/display.v?TARGET=printable&article_id=41af3cb90dc17 | title =Bush Picks Johanns As U.S. Ag Secretary Heineman will become governor | author =Ed Howard | publisher =nebraska.statepaper.com | date =December 2, 2004 | url-status =dead | archive-url =https://archive.today/20130411210340/http://nebraska.statepaper.com/vnews/display.v?TARGET=printable&article_id=41af3cb90dc17 | archive-date =April 11, 2013 }}

{{Reflist|30em}}

{{Commons}}

• {{C-SPAN|56552}}
• [https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/government/johanns-bio.html White House biography (archived)]
• [http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/!ut/p/_s.7_0_A/7_0_1OB/.cmd/ad/.ar/sa.retrievecontent/.c/6_2_1UH/.ce/7_2_5JM/.p/5_2_4TQ/.d/0/_th/J_2_9D/_s.7_0_A/7_0_1OB?PC_7_2_5JM_contentid=bios_johanns.xml USDA biography]

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