By Samuel Mattison
Alabama Political Reporter
Joining many others, state Rep. Ken Johnson, R-Moulton, announced over the weekend his retirement from the Legislature.
Johnson, in a statement, said the main reason was to focus on taking care of his quadriplegic son and returning to his business ventures.
“Serving the citizens of House District 7 has been among the greatest honors of my life, and I will leave office with the firm knowledge that the legislation I helped pass has made Alabama a better and more prosperous place to live,” Johnson said in a release.
Johnson ends a short two-term tenor in the lower chamber, but he leaves behind some key legislative victories.
Perhaps the most impactful was a bill that decriminalized the practice of midwifery, and led to the creation of Alabama’s first midwifery board. The bill saw a tumultuous run through the Statehouse and was only barely passed last-minute on the Senate floor.
The board recently had its members appointed by the governor.
One Republican, Decatur Police Lieutenant Prouncey Robertson, has qualified for his seat in Johnson’s place. Johnson called Robertson a “good, honest, and deeply conservative man” and gave him his full support in his bid for election.
Robertson will now face lone Democrat challenger Kenneth Brackins in a general election later this year.
With the announcement of Johnson’s retirement, 30 Legislators on Goat Hill will now be leaving their seats to either run for other offices or retire from politics entirely.
Primaries for Statehouse races are in June with general elections in November.
