Johnson was a hardware store owner in Preston, Minnesota, when he was first elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives in 1920.

In 1925, he was elected Speaker of the House, a position he held until he left the legislature in 1931.

Johnson served as postmaster of the house during his time out of office, and returned to the legislature as a representative in 1939, serving ten years, most of that as chair of the Municipal Affairs committee.

In 1949, he moved to the Minnesota Senate after winning a special election.

This article about a Minnesota politician is a stub.