By Dan Murphy
Yonkerstimes.com has learned that Westchester County Legislator Christopher Johnson is feverishly searching for an apartment in the 16th district in Yonkers that he represents, but no longer lives in. Johnson was caught living in a $770,000 home with his wife and child for the past 12 months outside the district, while he illegally rented out an affordable housing condo that he used to live in that is in the district.
Many top Westchester Democrats have had enough of Johnson, who admitted in an interview with the Yonkers Inspector General that he did not live in the district that he represents. And if Johnson wants to continue his narrative, claiming that the attacks against him are nothing more than a witch hunt by Mayor Mike Spano, sources are now telling us that a tape recording of his interview with the IG exists, where he says in his own words that he doesn’t live in the district.
Democratic members of the County Board met and have decided to remove Johnson as Majority Leader but not remove him from his Legislator position, despite having the evidence and based on the County Charter, the power to remove him.
The removal of Johnson as BOL Majority Leader will be announced next week, which is why Johnson is racing to find an apartment in the district before then.
There is a deep divide between those on the county board who want Johnson out, and those who are helping him survive. Among those who are throwing Johnson a lifeline quietly, behind the scenes, are Deputy County Executive Ken Jenkins and Legislator David Imamura, based on the belief that it will look bad if another democratic county legislator is removed. Former BOL Chair Catherine Borgia stepped down from her leadership post earlier this year.
Other top democrats are worried that if the Board doesn’t remove Johnson as Legislator, it will look worse for democrats. “He just can’t admit that he made a mistake and was wrong got caught. Democrats need to enforce our own, and if you have a bad egg, then crack the egg,” said one Westchester democrat.
“He (Johnson) just lost the democratic primary badly. Borgia was removed for much less. They punished Borgia badly but he gets to hang on? How does that work?”
Right now it appears that a lot of BOL Democrats are afraid to remove him. But if you don’t remove him, it will come back to democrats running this year or in the future that you let him stay in office,” said another Westchester democrat.
Yonkers Councilwoman Shanae Williams, who defeated Johnson in the democratic primary for BOL-in District 16 said, “I have called on Legislator Johnson to resign, based on the fact that he didn’t live in the district for 12 months. And if he doesn’t resign, I am calling on the Board of Legislators to remove him from his seat, based on the County Charter. This sets a bad precedent if they do nothing and let him stay in office.”
