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Kenyatta Johnson
2012 - Present
2028
13
Kenyatta Johnson (Democratic Party) is a member of the Philadelphia City Council in Pennsylvania, representing District 2. He assumed office on January 2, 2012. His current term ends on January 3, 2028.
Johnson (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the Philadelphia City Council to represent District 2 in Pennsylvania. He won in the general election on November 7, 2023.
Before becoming a member of city council, Johnson was a Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, representing District 186 from 2009 to 2011.[1]
Biography
Johnson is from the Point Breeze neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He earned his B.A. from Mansfield University in 1996. He went on to receive his MGA from the University of Pennsylvania in 2001. He then graduated from the Governing for Non-Profit Excellence Program at Harvard University School of Business in 2005. He founded the organization Peace Not Guns. Other professional experience includes working as a Pennsylvania State Senate staffer and serving as an AmeriCorp volunteer.[1][2]
Elections
2023
See also: City elections in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (2023)
General election
General election for Philadelphia City Council District 2
Incumbent Kenyatta Johnson won election in the general election for Philadelphia City Council District 2 on November 7, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Kenyatta Johnson (D) | 96.1 | 26,184 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 3.9 | 1,075 | ||
| Total votes: 27,259 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Philadelphia City Council District 2
Incumbent Kenyatta Johnson advanced from the Democratic primary for Philadelphia City Council District 2 on May 16, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Kenyatta Johnson | 95.2 | 18,884 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 4.8 | 952 | ||
| Total votes: 19,836 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Aaron Humphrey (D)
- Boogie Rose (D)
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Johnson in this election.
2019
See also: City council elections in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (2019)
General election
General election for Philadelphia City Council District 2
Incumbent Kenyatta Johnson defeated Michael Bradley in the general election for Philadelphia City Council District 2 on November 5, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Kenyatta Johnson (D) | 78.9 | 23,931 |
 | Michael Bradley (R) | 19.8 | 6,004 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 1.2 | 378 | ||
| Total votes: 30,313 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Philadelphia City Council District 2
Incumbent Kenyatta Johnson defeated Lauren Vidas in the Democratic primary for Philadelphia City Council District 2 on May 21, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Kenyatta Johnson | 59.7 | 13,358 |
 | Lauren Vidas | 40.2 | 8,995 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.0 | 5 | ||
| Total votes: 22,358 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Philadelphia City Council District 2
Michael Bradley advanced from the Republican primary for Philadelphia City Council District 2 on May 21, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Michael Bradley | 99.8 | 1,445 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.2 | 3 | ||
| Total votes: 1,448 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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2015
The city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, held elections for mayor and city council on November 3, 2015. A primary election took place on May 19, 2015. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was March 10, 2015. In the Democratic primary election for District 2, incumbent Kenyatta Johnson defeated Ori Feibush.[3] No Republican candidates filed to run for this seat.[4]
| Philadelphia City Council, District 2 Democratic Primary, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
 Kenyatta Johnson Incumbent |
62.1% | 14,993 | ||
| Ori Feibush | 37.8% | 9,123 | ||
| Write-in | 0% | 12 | ||
| Total Votes | 24,128 | |||
| Source: Philadelphia City Commissioners, "Historical Election Results," accessed August 24, 2015 | ||||
2010
Johnson won re-election to the 186th District seat in 2010. He defeated Timothy Hannah and Dyheim Watson in the primary election, receiving 5,563 votes while Hannah and Watson received 744 and 401 votes respectively. Johnson defeated Republican Keith Todd in the general election which took place on November 2, 2010.[5]
| Pennsylvania State House, District 186 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
|
Kenyatta Johnson (D) |
16,668 | 93.0% | ||
| Keith Todd (R) | 1,254 | 7.0% | ||
2008
On November 4, 2008, Johnson won re-election to the 186th District seat of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. He received 25,932 votes running unopposed.[6]
| Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 186 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Kenyatta Johnson (D)
|
25,932 | 100.0% | ||
Campaign themes
2023
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Kenyatta Johnson did not complete Ballotpedia's 2023 Candidate Connection survey.
2019
Kenyatta Johnson did not complete Ballotpedia's 2019 Candidate Connection survey.
2015
Johnson's website highlighted the following campaign themes:[7]
Minimun wage
- Excerpt: "Fighting to increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour so that moms and dads who work hard and play by the rules can afford to take care of their families.
Education
- Excerpt: "Continuing to work to improve our schools by working with the Wolf Administration to fix the broken state funding formula that shortchanges Philadelphia's schools. Making sure that teachers and administrators have the resources they need to create safe, effective learning environments."
Gun violence
- Excerpt: "Working with law enforcement to get more illegal guns off our streets and give young people better alternatives to prevent gun violence."
Economic development
- Excerpt: "Growing our neighborhoods and our economy through smart development that balances market rate growth with the needs of Second District families by supporting affordable housing options."
Campaign finance summary
Ballotpedia currently provides campaign finance data for all federal- and state-level candidates from 2020 and later. We are continuously working to expand our data to include prior elections. That information will be published here as we acquire it. If you would like to help us provide this data, please consider donating to Ballotpedia.
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Johnson and his wife Dawn have one son, Isaiah. They live in the Point Breeze neighborhood with their dog, Sasha Blu.[2]
Noteworthy events
Charged with accepting bribes (2020)
On January 29, 2020, Johnson and his wife, Dawn Chavous, were charged with accepting bribes from executives of the Philadelphia community development charity, Universal Companies, in exchange for passing legislation that increased the value of some of the charity’s properties.[8]
Chavous, Johnson, and the couple’s attorney have denied the allegations. A trial date was initially postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.[8] The trial was eventually set to commence on February 1, 2022, but was postponed to March 21, 2022.[9][10] Judge Gerald Austin McHugh, Jr declared a mistrial on April 19, 2022, after the jury remained deadlocked for 25 hours. A retrial was set for September 2022.[11]
Johnson and Chavous were acquitted of the charges on November 2, 2022.[12]
State legislative tenure
Committee assignments
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Johnson was appointed to these committees:
- Children & Youth
- Human Services
- State Government
- Urban Affairs
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Johnson served on these committees:
- Aging & Older Adult Services Committee, Pennsylvania House of Representatives
- Children & Youth Committee, Pennsylvania House of Representatives
- Commerce Committee, Pennsylvania House of Representatives
- Urban Affairs Committee, Pennsylvania House of Representatives, Secretary
See also
2023 Elections
External links
|
Officeholder Philadelphia City Council District 2 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 City of Philadelphia, "Position 2," accessed December 15, 2014
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Kenyatta Johnson campaign website, "About Kenyatta," accessed August 26, 2015
- ↑ Philadelphia City Commissioners, "Historical Election Results," accessed August 24, 2015
- ↑ Office of the Philadelphia City Commissioners, "Comprehensive Election Calendar," accessed November 17, 2014
- ↑ 2010 general election results from the Pennsylvania Secretary of State's office
- ↑ Pennsylvania Department of State, "Official 2008 General Election Results," accessed April 15, 2014
- ↑ Kenyatta Johnson campaign website, "Agenda," accessed August 26, 2015
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 The Philadelphia Tribune, "Kenyatta Johnson corruption trial postponed," December 30, 2020
- ↑ Casetext.com, "United States v. Islam," accessed November 2, 2021
- ↑ Axios, "Philly Councilmember Bobby Henon resigned. Now what?" January 21, 2022
- ↑ WHYY, "Round two: September retrial set for Kenyatta Johnson and co-defendants," May 24, 2022
- ↑ Axios Philadelphia, "Jury acquits Philly Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson in bribery trial," November 2, 2022
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Philadelphia City Council District 2 2012-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 186 2009-2011 |
Succeeded by - |
| |||||||||
