Marion Johnson

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Marion Johnson

Nonpartisan

Elections and appointments

Last election

November 2, 2021

Education

Bachelor's

Wellesley College, 2009

Graduate

Duke University, 2014

Personal

Birthplace

Yonkers, N.Y.

Religion

Atheist

Profession

Senior consultant

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Campaign Instagram

Personal LinkedIn

Marion Johnson ran for election to the Durham City Council to represent Ward 1 in North Carolina. She lost in the general election on November 2, 2021.

Johnson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2021. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Marion Johnson was born in Yonkers, New York. Johnson's professional experience includes working as a senior consultant at Frontline Solutions. She earned a bachelor's degree from Wellesley College in 2009 and a master's degree from Duke University in 2014.

Elections

2021

See also: City elections in Durham, North Carolina (2021)

General election

General election for Durham City Council Ward 1

Incumbent DeDreana Freeman defeated Marion Johnson in the general election for Durham City Council Ward 1 on November 2, 2021.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		DeDreana Freeman (Nonpartisan)	71.1	21,408
		Marion Johnson (Nonpartisan)	28.7	8,631
		Other/Write-in votes	0.3	84

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 30,123
= 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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Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Durham City Council Ward 1

Incumbent DeDreana Freeman and Marion Johnson defeated Elizabeth Takla and Waldo Fenner in the primary for Durham City Council Ward 1 on October 5, 2021.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		DeDreana Freeman (Nonpartisan)	69.5	13,658
✔		Marion Johnson (Nonpartisan)	26.9	5,292
	Submit photo	Elizabeth Takla (Nonpartisan)	2.1	413
	Submit photo	Waldo Fenner (Nonpartisan)	1.5	297

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 19,660
= 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.

Endorsements

To view Johnson's endorsements in the 2021 election, please click here.

Campaign themes

2021

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Marion Johnson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2021. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Johnson's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am a first generation Nigerian American woman running for Durham City Council in Ward 1. I currently work as a senior consultant at Frontline Solutions, a Black-owned social justice consulting firm. I also serve as the chair of Durham’s participatory budgeting steering committee.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• We have a choice between two Durhams: a Durham that prioritizes unsustainable development in a few areas while neglecting long-standing communities, and an equity-centered Durham that prioritizes accessibility, affordability, and livability for all. Durham’s future depends on us making the right choice.
• My vision for Durham is a community that is grounded in equity, shared abundance, and accessibility. That kind of community is only possible if we center the experiences and amplify the voices of the people who are closest to harm. That includes people who are suffering from gentrification, displacement, and homelessness. That includes people who are struggling to make ends meet, especially thanks to this pandemic. That includes people who are living in sidewalk-poor neighborhoods with insufficient public transit access.
• My leadership will be based in listening to and amplifying those voices, making sure people feel heard--not just by me, but by the city council as a whole. I want people to feel empowered to speak with us, and to know that we will walk alongside them to help find the answers and support that they need.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I have spent my career championing the things I’m passionate about - equity, justice, and liberation. In terms of public policy, I’m deeply passionate about workers’ rights, economic justice, and social justice; and using an equity framework to evaluate all of our policies and processes.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

The traits I most admire in others are authenticity, vulnerability, and self-knowledge. I count Serena Williams, Shirley Chisholm, Representative Ayanna Pressley, and Muhammad Ali amongst my heroes. Each of them is a trailblazer in their field, and they are all unapologetic about about their values, their strengths, their failures, and their Blackness.

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

Samwise Gamgee's speech in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.

It’s all wrong. By rights we shouldn’t even be here. But we are.
It’s like in the great stories Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were, and sometimes you didn’t want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad happened?
But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer.

Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something. Even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn’t. Because they were holding on to something...That there’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo. And it’s worth fighting for.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

I believe the ability and desire to listen with empathy and compassion are required for any kind of public service. My greatest priority as a community member and potential civil servant is to listen and amplify the voices of people who are systemically ignored and cut out of conversations that impact their lives, and to let them know that I will do everything in my power to make them be heard.

What legacy would you like to leave?

A large part of my current job at Frontline Solutions, a Black-owned social justice consulting firm, is helping organizations create work environments that are equitable and affirming. None of our systems, structures, or institutions are built for equity. They're all designed to protect and reinforce capitalism, patriarchy, and white supremacy. Creating equitable and affirming environments requires dismantling the current status quo, centering marginalized voices, and repairing harm. It also requires recognizing that our liberation is bound together. As a city councilmember I would lead the effort to make city council, and the community at large, as accessible, affirming, and equitable as possible, so that every member of our community feels heard, supported, and empowered.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

The O.J. Simpson murder trial is the first one that comes to mind. I was 7 years old when it began.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My first full-time job was Administrative Coordinator at the National Coalition for LGBT Health. I started that job 10 days after I graduated from college in 2009, and left 14 months later for a job at the National Partnership for Women and Families.

What is your favorite book? Why?

Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. This book made me feel known in a way that I didn't think was possible.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

Lil Nas X, "That's What I Want" is currently stuck in my head.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for holders of this office to have previous experience in government or politics?

I believe it is beneficial, but not required. I believe that anyone who is truly curious, passionate, and dedicated to their community can hold this office; and I also believe that "experience" comes in many forms. We too often fall back on "experience" as a way to reinforce a status quo that doesn't represent--and often explicitly harms--many communities. What matters most is someone's values and their capacity to learn, grow, and do what's right.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

See also

2021 Elections

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Candidate

Durham City Council Ward 1

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