At a recent campaign forum, he cited his experience in working with people and handling financial matters through working 22 years at a large area bank.
While at the bank, he worked with some large nonprofit building projects using tax-exempt and conventional bond financing.
Johnson said he had the best skill set of the candidates, and had served on several nonprofit boards. He said the 4th District residents need to tell the story of the community, including how crime rates are down. Economic growth would not be a quick fix, he said, and it takes a long period of time, very focused on the objective, to make necessary changes.
Johnson said the people in the district did not have enough access to adequate health care. The healthy campus plan did not address the true disparities of health care access that exist in the community, he said. He said there is a need to look at how the 4th District could have better access to health care, as the county’s two hospitals are located in the Rosedale area and in western Wyandotte County.
Johnson said a commissioner has to be a consensus builder, be respectful, and also state his issues.
“The whole idea of a unified government – we don’t see that any more, there are little factions now,” he said.
Commissioners would need to look at how they can best work together, and to make sure there is a plan “that works for all of us,” Johnson said.
He described himself as “not a lot of flash” and said he works in a very methodical way.
On the issue of diversity in hiring at City Hall positions including the police and fire departments, Johnson said it was clear to him from a recent public hearing that the application process is unfair. He called for more transparency in the process. He also said the hiring of family members had to stop. The application and hiring process is completely skewed, he believes.