Kevin Johnson

Who is Kevin Johnson?

Kevin Maurice Johnson is the current mayor of Sacramento, the capital city of the U.S. state of California. Elected in 2008 and reelected in 2012, Johnson is the first African American to serve in that office. Prior to entering politics, Johnson was a professional basketball player in the NBA, playing point guard for the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Phoenix Suns. During his 12-year playing career, Johnson was a three-time NBA All-Star and four-time second team All-NBA selection, along with holding numerous records for the Phoenix Suns organization. At the University of California, Berkeley, Johnson was named a two-time All-Pac-10 Conference player and an honorable-mention All-American by the Associated Press. Johnson was a 2000 graduate of the Harvard Divinity School Summer Leadership Institute, a program that prepares students for work in faith-based urban economic revitalization. He also has a B.A. in Political Science from U.C. Berkeley that he completed after his initial retirement from the NBA. Since founding St. HOPE in 1989, Johnson has been extremely active in education reform. As Mayor, Johnson launched two education initiatives, Stand UP and Sacramento READS!, to benefit students in Sacramento. Johnson also helped to save the Sacramento Kings basketball team from moving to Anaheim, and later, Seattle.