Joseph Johnson, a Glenview small-business owner and father of four, is running as the Republican candidate for Illinois House of Representatives in District 55. The seat is on the ballot in the general election.
Johnson said he entered the race because "the current path in Springfield is simply unsustainable." He pointed to families leaving the state, rising crime and what he called political agendas in classrooms. He described his campaign as built on a solution-first approach that puts people before politics.
Candidate information
- Party: Republican
- Office sought: Illinois House of Representatives, District 55
- Residence: Unincorporated Glenview, Illinois
- Education: Bachelor's degree, DePaul University
- Family: Fourth of six children; grew up in a blue-collar union household in Northlake, where his father was a sheet metal welder and his mother worked at Jewel. He has four children, ages 6 to 15.
- Family in government: None
Experience and public service
Johnson spent 14.5 years at HSBC, rising to assistant vice president of Consumer and Mortgage Lending Default Services. He said the role taught him to balance the needs of individual clients and senior executives alike.
He has also worked as an education advisor and in sales at Trading Advantage, as a project manager at Chicago Water and Fire Restoration, as student services director and sales manager at Target Trading Academy, and as a consultant and sales manager at Johnson Consulting Enterprises LLC.
His only public-sector role is a 2013 appointment to the Northlake Zoning Board. No one in his family works in politics or government, according to his questionnaire response.
On the issues
Johnson outlined his positions in a questionnaire submitted to Surround Sound News and on his campaign website.
Property taxes: Johnson called property taxes his top priority. He proposed a "Truth in Taxation" reform package to strengthen the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law, known as PTELL. His plan includes requiring simplified notices before any levy increase, mandating voter referendums for increases that exceed inflation-adjusted caps and halting state-level unfunded mandates that force local tax hikes. He said he would measure success by whether year-over-year levy growth aligns with the Consumer Price Index and by a reduction in double-digit annual tax-bill increases.
Other priorities: Johnson also listed public safety, parental rights in education and small-business support as campaign pillars. He said he supports fully backing law enforcement, giving parents a voice in their children's education and creating conditions where small businesses and jobs can grow. He did not provide specific legislative proposals on those topics.
The general election is Nov. 3, 2026.
