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Naomi Johnson
Naomi Johnson was a nonpartisan candidate for Seat 4 representative on the Boise City Council in Idaho. Johnson was defeated in the general election on November 7, 2017. Click here to read Johnson's response to Ballotpedia's 2017 municipal candidate survey.
Biography
Johnson was born in Twin Falls, Idaho. Her professional experience includes working as a community organizer and clinical social worker. She has worked in mental health and management services, and with victims of domestic violence and veterans. Johnson received a master's degree in social work in 2014.[1]
Elections
2017
The city of Boise, Idaho, held elections for city council on November 7, 2017. Three of the six seats on the city council were up for election. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was September 8, 2017.[2] Incumbent TJ Thomson defeated Naomi Johnson, Crispin Gravatt, and Nicolas Way in the Boise City Council Seat 4 general election.[3]
| Boise City Council, Seat 4 General Election, 2017 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 TJ Thomson Incumbent |
46.79% | 10,955 |
| Naomi Johnson | 38.37% | 8,985 |
| Crispin Gravatt | 7.47% | 1,748 |
| Nicolas Way | 7.38% | 1,727 |
| Total Votes | 23,415 | |
| Source: Ada County Clerk's Office, "November 2017 Consolidated Election Official Results," November 14, 2017 | ||
Campaign themes
2017
Candidate survey
Johnson participated in Ballotpedia's 2017 survey of municipal government candidates.[4] The following sections display her responses to the survey questions. When asked what her top priority would be if elected, the candidate made the following statement:
| “ | Accessibilty of council members, bringing community voices into council decisions on a much larger level than currently exists.[5] | ” |
| —Naomi Johnson (September 26, 2017)[1] | ||
Ranking the issues
The candidate was asked to rank the following issues by importance in the city, with 1 being the most important and 12 being the least important: city services (trash, utilities, etc.), civil rights, crime reduction/prevention, environment, government transparency, homelessness, housing, K-12 education, public pensions/retirement funds, recreational opportunities, transportation, and unemployment. This table displays this candidate's rankings from most to least important.
| Issue importance ranking | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking |
Issue | Candidate's ranking |
Issue |
| Housing | City services (trash, utilities, etc.) | ||
| Homelessness | K-12 education | ||
| Environment | Recreational opportunities | ||
| Transportation | Civil rights | ||
| Government transparency | Public pensions/retirement funds | ||
| Unemployment | No item ranked at this value by the candidate. | ||
Nationwide municipal issues
The candidate was asked to answer questions from Ballotpedia regarding issues facing cities across America. The questions are in the left column and the candidate's responses are in the right column. Some questions provided multiple choices, which are noted after those questions.
| Question | Response |
|---|---|
| Very important | |
| Local | |
| Increased economic opportunities | |
| Focusing on small business development | |
| The New Path housing project. | |
| The balance between economic gain and quality of life in reference to the rapid development of our City. I will add balance as you Council person, in terms of advocacy for that quality of life. |
Additional themes
Johson's website highlighted the following campaign themes:[6]
City council accessibility
- Excerpt: "It is a priority of mine to bring ordinary voices into council decisions by improving council accessibility, embracing controversial conversations, and increasing representation to include all neighborhoods."
F35s
- Excerpt: "Currently, Boise is competing with five other cities to house F35s at Gowen Field. F35s are large aircraft known to be much louder than other fighter jets. This could have a detrimental effect on our Bench community."
- Excerpt: "In my experience, our community is interested in talking about both the positive and negative impacts of bringing F35s to our community. While it seems our city is interested in speaking only of the economic gains, we must question if the economic gain is worth the impact the project would have on the livability of Boise."
Homelessness
- Excerpt: "Our recent handling of the homeless situation at Cooper Court was inexcusable and did nothing but make the situation less visible. I will create community partnerships with successful agencies that already exist in our community. As your Councilwoman, I will consider homelessness a priority and continue to use the housing first philosophy to get our veterans and homeless individuals off the streets."
Environmental impacts
- Excerpt: "We must continue to grow our understanding of our impact as a city on the environment by maintaining projects like the Open Space & Clean Water levy and by understanding the importance of banking locally."
Transportation
- Excerpt: "There are many benefits in continuing to improve our biking community as well as addressing the importance of a highly functioning and accessible transportation system. I look forward to working with community members already chipping away at these issues to create the livability we all deserve in Boise as a city."
Renters
- Excerpt: "As it stands, there is no one on the Boise City Council that rents their housing. This limits perspectives around issues of rising costs for renters and the limited availability of affordable renting options. I will give a voice to individuals and families who may have limited resources and those who make the choice to opt out of home ownership."
Economy
- Excerpt: "We have economically-minded individuals on our city council and have seen the many benefits. I will add a unique and necessary perspective by continually representing the best interests of our various community members and their unique needs."
Endorsements
2017
Johnson received the following endorsements in 2017:[1]
- National Association Of Social Workers, the Idaho Chapter
- Former State Sen. Nicole LeFavour (D)
- Maria Andrade
- Delmar de la Torre Stone, NASW Idaho Chapter, Executive Director
- Rev. Ed Keener
- Yara Slaton
- Ivy Merrell
- Maritza Lorenzana
- Heather Socwell
- Lori Watsen
- Andrea Christopher
- JT Cole
- Rebecca Scott
- Caleb Hansen
- Anthony Lee
- Peggie Lynne
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Naomi Johnson Boise City Council. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Boise, Idaho | Idaho | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Ballotpedia's municipal government candidate survey, 2017, "Naomi Johnson's Responses," September 26, 2017
- ↑ City of Boise, "City Elections," accessed February 22, 2017
- ↑ City of Boise, "Election Documents," accessed September 10, 2017
- ↑ Note: The candidate's answers have been reproduced here verbatim without edits or corrections by Ballotpedia.
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Naomi Johnson campaign website, "Issues," accessed October 20, 2017
