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Tara Johnson

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Tara Johnson
Member-elect of the Wisconsin State Assembly
from the 96th district
Assuming office
January 6, 2025
SucceedingLoren Oldenburg
Chair of the Board of Supervisors of La Crosse County, Wisconsin
In office
July 21, 2011 – April 21, 2020
Preceded bySteve Doyle
Succeeded byMonica Kruse
Member of the La Crosse County Board of Supervisors for the 29th district
In office
April 2000 – April 21, 2020
Preceded byLila Seager
Succeeded byJamie O'Neill
Personal details
Born1962 or 1963 (age 61–62)
Political partyDemocratic
Spouses
  • Scott M. Finn
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1984; div. 1993)​
  • Timothy D. Padesky
Children2
ResidenceShelby, Wisconsin
EducationCarroll University
OccupationPolitician
WebsiteCampaign website

Tara J. Johnson (born c.1962) is an American Democratic politician and retired nonprofit executive from La Crosse County, Wisconsin. She is a member-elect of the Wisconsin State Assembly, and will represent Wisconsin's 96th Assembly district in the 2025–2026 term. She previously served as a member of the La Crosse County board of supervisors, from 2000 to 2020, and was the first female chairperson of the county board, holding that office from 2011 to 2020.

During her first marriage, she was known as Tara Johnson Finn.

Early life and career

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Tara Johnson graduated from Carroll University in 1984, with her bachelor's degree in German. Shortly after her college graduation, she went to work at the United Way of Greater Milwaukee.[1] After five years, she transferred to the United Way of Brown County, Wisconsin,[2] before becoming executive director of the United Way of the La Crosse Area in 1993.[3] While working at the United Way, Johnson was a member of the AFSCME union, and often represented her colleagues in contract negotiations.[4]

Political career

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Johnson made her first bid for public office in 2000. She sought a seat on the La Crosse County Board of Supervisors, challenging 12-year incumbent supervisor Lila Seager. Johnson didn't take issue with particular policies or votes of Seager, but offered her candidacy as a fresh perspective on the board.[5] Johnson won the election by just 19 votes.[6] She was subsequently re-elected nine times, serving until 2020.

State Senate run (2008)

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In 2008, Johnson ran for Wisconsin Senate, challenging Republican incumbent Dan Kapanke in the 32nd Senate district.[7] At the time, the 32nd Senate district comprised all of La Crosse, Crawford, and Vernon counties, along with the southern half of Monroe County and parts of northwest Richland County. The 32nd Senate district was one of the mostly hotly contested legislative races in the state that year; Johnson fell 2,507 votes short of Kapanke.[8]

County board chair (2011–2020)

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In 2011, County board chair Steve Doyle was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly and subsequently resigned the chair. Johnson was elected to succeed him, and became the first female chair of the La Crosse County board.[9] She continued as chair until leaving office in April 2020.[10]

U.S. House bid (2023–2024)

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In the fall of 2023, Johnson announced that she would run for United States House of Representatives in Wisconsin's 3rd congressional district. At the time, she was the third Democrat to enter the race, seeking the party's nomination to challenge first term incumbent Republican Derrick Van Orden.[11] A fourth Democrat, state representative Katrina Shankland, soon joined the race; Johnson opted to withdraw from the race after her father's death in January 2024.[12]

State Assembly (2024)

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Johnson's plans changed again two months later, after the legislature was forced to adopt a new redistricting act due to the Wisconsin Supreme Court striking down the previous decade-old Republican gerrymander. The La Crosse area was significantly impacted by the redistricting. The city of La Crosse, which had been entirely packed into the 95th Assembly district, was unpacked into the 94th, 95th, and 96th districts, creating three competitive but Democratic-leaning seats. The new 96th Assembly district comprised nearly all of Vernon County, along with the southwest corner of La Crosse County, including Johnson's hometown, Shelby.

Johnson was the first candidate to declare her candidacy for the seat, in March 2024.[13] She was soon joined by Viroqua businessman and political newcomer Steven Campbell, setting up a contested Democratic primary.[14] In the primary, Johnson emphasized her 20 years of experience on the county board, working in collaboration with the legislature and local governments.[15] She won the primary in a landslide, taking 74% of the vote,[16] and went on to face Republican incumbent Loren Oldenburg. Johnson narrowly defeated Oldenburg in the general election, receiving 51% of the vote.[17] She is set to take office in January 2025.

Personal life and family

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Tara Johnson took the last name Finn when she married Scott Finn in 1984.[18] They were married for nine years before divorcing in 1993.[19] Tara subsequently returned to her maiden name before marrying Timothy Padesky, a union electrician. Johnson resides with her husband in the town of Shelby, Wisconsin, just outside of La Crosse; they have two adult children.[4]

Electoral history

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Wisconsin Senate (2008)

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Year Election Date Elected Defeated Total Plurality
2008 General[8] Nov. 4 Dan Kapanke (inc) Republican 45,154 51.38% Tara Johnson Dem. 42,647 48.53% 87,881 2,507

Wisconsin Assembly (2024)

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Year Election Date Elected Defeated Total Plurality
2024 Primary[16] Aug. 13 Tara Johnson Democratic 6,391 74.14% Steven Campbell Dem. 2,226 25.82% 8,620 4,165
General[17]
(unofficial) 		Nov. 5 Tara Johnson Democratic 16,579 51.03% Loren Oldenburg (inc) Rep. 15,912 48.97% 32,491 667

References

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  1. ^ "Ninth Annual CA Dinner Held". Kewaskum Statesman. June 26, 1987. p. 15. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com. Tara Finn, of United Way - Greater Milwaukee
  2. ^ "Tara Finn". Green Bay Press-Gazette. June 7, 1991. p. 4. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "United Way official gets La Crosse job". Green Bay Press-Gazette. June 26, 1993. p. 15. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b "Meet Tara". Tara Johnson for Assembly. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
  5. ^ Magney, Reid (March 31, 2000). "20th District: Candidates have health backgrounds". La Crosse Tribune. p. C1. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Election 2000 (Contested Races)". La Crosse Tribune. April 5, 2000. p. 23. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Magney, Reid (May 13, 2008). "Johnson to challenge Kapanke". La Crosse Tribune. p. 9. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ a b Results of Fall General Election - 11/04/2008 (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. December 1, 2008. p. 10. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Wisconsin Historical Society.
  9. ^ "Johnson elected county board chairwoman". La Crosse Tribune. July 22, 2011. p. 7. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ Johnson, Tara (April 22, 2020). "County staff does impressive work". La Crosse Tribune. p. A2. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Tara Johnson joins US House race". La Crosse Tribune. September 7, 2023. p. A1. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Doyle backs Shankland for Congress". La Crosse Tribune. January 18, 2024. p. A7. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Johnson running for new 96th seat". La Crosse Tribune. March 10, 2024. p. A1. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Campbell to run for 96th Assembly District". La Crosse Tribune. April 2, 2024. p. A3. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Meet the candidates for Wisconsin's 96th Assembly District". La Crosse Tribune. July 30, 2024. p. A5. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ a b County by County Report - 2024 Partisan Primary (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. August 26, 2024. p. 96. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
  17. ^ a b "2024 Wisconsin General Elections Results - State Assembly District 96". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. November 6, 2024. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
  18. ^ "To Wed". The Waukesha County Freeman. September 15, 1984. p. 8. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ "La Crosse County Case Number 1993FA000503 Scott M Finn vs Tara Finn". Wisconsin Circuit Court Access. 1993. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
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Political offices
Preceded by Chair of the Board of Supervisors of La Crosse County, Wisconsin
July 21, 2011 – April 21, 2020 		Succeeded by
Monica Kruse
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