Mayor Johnson is a Savannah native who graduated from A.E. Beach High School in 1960, Armstrong Junior College in 1964 and the University of Georgia in 1967. He served from 1959 to 1965 in the U.S. Naval Reserve. In 1969, he earned a master's degree in social work from Clark Atlanta University and, in 1980, he received his Ph.D. from the Heller School of Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University. Before becoming mayor, Johnson worked for the Economic Opportunity Authority, Model Cities Program, and Savannah State University. From 1983 until 1988, he served as the City Council Representative from the second district of Savannah. He then became the Executive Director of the Chatham Savannah Youth Futures Authority.
Political career
City Alderman
Johnson served as the Alderman of District #2 in Savannah from 1982 to 1988. He resigned in 1988 to accept a position as Executive Director of the Chatham Savannah Youth Futures Authority.
In 1999, he began a four-year term on the Savannah-Chatham County Board of Education.
Mayor
In November 2003, Johnson was elected to a four-year term as Mayor of Savannah against two-term Alderman Pete Liakakis, and four other candidates. He took office in January 2004. In April 2005, Mayor Johnson publicly challenged Savannah's African American community to begin a concerted effort to address the city's high crime rate, especially in predominantly black neighborhoods of the city. Johnson stressed that criminal acts in Savannah were often perpetrated by young African American males on their own community, and he called a series of well-attended town meetings to address the problem. On April 2, 2007, Johnson announced he would seek reelection to the office of Mayor. His second campaign is similar to the first in that he is focused on neighborhood improvement, crime reduction, poverty reduction and providing more affordable housing. While campaigning, Johnson announced that Savannah had been declared a Preserve America city by the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. On November 6, 2007, Johnson beat a field of 5 other candidates to win a second term as Mayor. Johnson got 12,826 votes. His nearest competitor got 2,359 votes. Johnson endorsed candidate Barack Obama in the presidential election of 2008.
Personal life
In 2006, Otis Johnson was hospitalized after he had a heart attack while attending a conference for black mayors. While he was away from City Hall for weeks, he made a full recovery.
Electoral history
Mayor of Savannah, 2003 Threshold > 50% First Ballot, November 4, 2003
