Tim Johnson was first elected to the Urbana City Council in 1971. Five years later, he was elected a state representative. His most serious challenge came in 1992, when redistricting forced he and a Democrat incumbent into the same district.
In that race, Johnson defeated 20-year incumbent State Rep. Helen Satterthwaite with 61 percent of the vote in a district that President Bill Clinton carried.
In the March 2000 primary, Johnson got 44 percent of the vote in a four-way GOP primary that included Sam Ewing, the son of retiring incumbent U.S. Rep. Tom Ewing, and another state representative, Bill Brady, who had the endorsement of House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill. Johnson won with 53 percent of the vote in 2000.
In 2002, Johnson defeated Democratic opponent Joshua Hartke, a 27-year-old political novice who works for the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine in Champaign.
Under the new congressional map, the 15th District covers 22 counties in east-central Illinois and parts of the southeastern part of the state. It runs from Streator in the north to Eldorado in the south.
