Eddie Bernice Johnson

Eddie Bernice Johnson represented the 30th congressional district of Texas in the United States House of Representatives from 1993 until her retirement from the House in 2023. In 2021, Johnson became the first African American and first female ranking member of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology. She was also the first nurse elected to Congress.

Johnson was born December 3, 1935, in Waco, Texas. She received a nursing certificate from St. Mary's College at the University of Notre Dame, her bachelor's degree in nursing at Texas Christian University in 1967, and her master's degree in public administration from Southern Methodist in 1976.

In 1972, Johnson was elected to the Texas House of Representatives. In 1977, President Jimmy Carter appointed her as the regional director of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. In 1986, she was elected to the Texas State Senate.

While in the U.S. House of Representatives, Johnson has served on the Science, Space, and Technology Committee and the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. She has also served as the senior democratic deputy whip, chair of the House Metro Congestion Coalition, and co-chair for Congressional Caucus on Homelessness. She founded and co-chaired the Diversity and Innovation Caucus and the House Historical Black Colleges and Universities Caucus.

Johnson died December 31, 2023.

For more information on Johnson's policy subject areas, committee appointments and sponsored/co-sponsored legislation during her time in the U.S. House of Representatives, please visit her profile on https://www.congress.gov.

Sources:

Ballotpedia (n.d.). Eddie Bernice Johnson. Retrieved on November 21 2022, from https://ballotpedia.org/Eddie_Bernice_Johnson