former County Legislator Christopher Johnson
On July 24, Westchester County Legislator Christopher Johnson resigned his post effective immediately. Johnson has been embroiled in a scandal involving two facts: one, that for the past year, he had lived outside of the 16th BOL district that he represents, which is a violation of the Westchester County Charter.
Second, Johnson owns an affordable housing condo in Yonkers that was his listed residence during his terms as a county legislator. Last month, it was discovered that other persons were living in the one-bedroom condo and Johnson was not. This was a violation of the City of Yonkers Affordable Housing Ordinance.
Yonkers Inspector General Liam McLaughlin issued a report which found that Johnson and his wife Tai had purchased an $800,000 home outside of the 16th BOL district, and that Johnson had listed the new home as his primary residence.
Johnson had called the accusatons a “political hit job,” but later admitted under oath to IG McLaughlin all of the allegations made against him. He then lost the democratic primary to Shanae Williams.
Johnson had also tried to find an apartment in the 16th district over the past two weeks, apparently in an attempt to hold his office until the end of the year. But many on the Westchester County Board, and other elected officials, wanted Johnson out of office as soon as possible.
In a statement after his resignation, Westchester BOL Chair Vedat Gashi said, “Today, the Westchester Board of Legislators received a resignation notice from County Legislator Christopher Johnson. We have a responsibility as elected representatives to serve in the best interest of our constituents. While we understand that Legislator Johnson’s decision to resign was not an easy one for him to make we believe it was the correct one and serves the best interests of the constituents of the 16th District.
“We thank County Legislator Johnson for his years of service to the people of the 16th Legislative District and the people of Westchester. Going forward, as ever, the Board of Legislators remains committed to our collective mission of fostering a prosperous, inclusive, and sustainable future for the people of Westchester County.”
