Jordan Johnson
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Jordan Johnson is currently the University of Florida Student Body President. He is a member of the Unite Party.
Johnson was born on April 5, 1987 in Celebration, Florida. He is the son of Randy Johnson, a former Representative in the Florida House of Representatives.
Before his election to the presidency, Johnson was a Student Senator for District B, serving as chairman of the Budget and Appropriations Committee and later as Senate President.
[edit] Senate elections and career, 2007-2009
Jordan Johnson was first elected to the Student Senate in Fall 2007 as part of the Gator Party District B Slate. Johnson was assigned to the Budget and Appropriations Committee under then chairman Paul Drayton. After Drayton was elected Student Body Treasurer in Spring 2008, Johnson became chairman of the committee.
In Fall 2008, Johnson was reelected, still running in District B with the Gator Party. However, after the Green Means Go email scandal during the election, Johnson attempted to distance himself politically from the Gator Party when running for Senate President. Promising increased transparency and fairness toward the minority Orange and Blue Party, Johnson was unanimously elected Senate President.
As Senate President, Johnson's first acts were to charter a Replacement and Agenda Transparency Committee and a Campus Improvements Committee. However, Johnson soon came under fire from minority members, who called the Transparency Committee an attempt to whitewash Green Means Go. Johnson also brought several pieces of legislation that reduced or eliminated minority protections within the Senate, all of which failed to pass.
During the buildup to the Spring 2009 election, Johnson also worked to expand student organization office space on the third floor of the J. Wayne Reitz Union.
[edit] 2009 presidential campaign
On January 14, 2009, Johnson announced that he would be running for Student Body President with the newly-formed Unite Party. On January 23, the Unite Party announced Larnell Vickers as their candidate for Student Body Vice President and Maryam Laguna for Student Body Treasurer. Student Senator William Harrell served as the Unite Party President and assisted Johnson heavily with the campaign.
Throughout the election, Johnson and the Unite Party continued attempts to distance themselves from the Gator Party, both being the Florida Blue Key-backed party for their respective elections and having the same membership. In this regard, Johnson and the Unite Party's campaign was extremely well-run, adopting the slogan "A Positive New Direction" and claiming "uniting the campus" as their top priority.
The Orange and Blue-Progress split led to Johnson running against two opposition parties, which all but secured his victory.
Johnson won the election with 62 percent of the vote. He was sworn in on May 1, 2009.
[edit] Presidency
As Student Body President, Johnson spearheaded a campaign against driving under the influence for University of Florida students, with a key event being held at the Swamp Restaurant on August 26, 2009, where a private taxi service called Fabulous Rides provided free rides to students as part of a promotional effort. However, on September 16, Johnson's Finance and Fees Secretary, William Stewart Sedgwick IV, was arrested on DUI charges. Sedgwick resigned two days later.
Johnson has also began a new policy records policy within Student Government by providing a FERPA waiver to SG officials and Senators. This effort occurred while former Chomp the Vote Executive Director Frank Bracco began to sue the university for the release of Student Government records. Johnson's efforts have been criticized by minority party members, who claim that the records are already open to the public.
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