What to know about Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson ahead of the RNC

Ron Johnson is Wisconsin’s senior U.S. senator. He’s held his seat since 2011 and won a third six-year term to the U.S. Senate after narrowly defeating Democratic challenger Lieutenant Gov. Mandela Barnes in the 2022 midterm election.

The senator will speak at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

Here’s what to know.

When was Ron Johnson elected?

Johnson was first elected in 2010 after he defeated Democratic incumbent Russ Feingold. The Oshkosh Republican won a rematch against Feingold in 2016. Though he previously said he would only serve two terms, in 2022 he defeated Barnes by 1 percentage point or about 27,000 votes.

What is Ron Johnson’s background?

Johnson, 69, was born in 1955 in Mankato, Minnesota. He is one of four children. His mother Jean was a film processor and his father Dale was a corporate and church treasurer. His full name is Ronald Harold Johnson.

He went to Edina High School in the Minneapolis area and graduated from the University of Minnesota in 1977, where he studied business and accounting.

Prior to entering politics, Johnson helped found Pacur, an Oshkosh-based plastics company, with his wife's family, the Curlers. He worked at Pacur as a machine operator and accountant before being CEO.

Who are Ron Johnson's family?

Johnson and his wife Jane married in 1977. They later had three children, Carey, Jenna and Ben, all of whom attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison. They are grandparents to four kids.

What are Ron Johnson’s views on Trump and voting record?

Johnson is a vocal ally of former President Donald Trump. He twice voted against convicting Trump after the former president was impeached by the House of Representatives.

In May, he said he wouldn’t pledge to accept the results of the 2024 election, leaving a door open to objecting to the certification of election results — a scenario that prompted an attack on the U.S. Capitol four years ago when former President Donald Trump lost reelection.

“We have to see exactly what happens," Johnson said in an interview at the state Republican Party convention in Appleton. "If there are all kinds of abuses, we might have to start questioning those abuses, might have to investigate them. I certainly want to (accept the results).”

There's no evidence to support that Wisconsin's election was tainted by cheating or fraud in 2020. The results have been confirmed by recounts in Dane and Milwaukee counties that Trump paid for, court rulings, a nonpartisan state audit and a study by the conservative legal firm Wisconsin Institute of Law & Liberty, among other analyses.

Johnson votes with President Joe Biden's position around 34% of the time, including the approval of many of his cabinet nominees, according to FiveThirtyEight.

Johnson has come out in support of exceptions to abortion restrictions in the cases of rape, incest, and life of the mother. He also indicated support for contraceptives and said he wouldn't oppose legislation codifying same-sex marriage into federal law.

How popular is Ron Johnson? What are his current approval ratings?

Johnson's approval ratings have decreased in recent few years, according to polling by the Marquette Law School. In a June 2024 poll, 38% of voters viewed the senator favorably and 50% viewed him unfavorably, giving him a -12 net approval rating.

When will Ron Johnson speak at the RNC?

Delegates will formally nominate former President Donald Trump as the party's candidate to take on incumbent Democrat Joe Biden at the RNC the week of July 15- 18. Sen. Ron Johnson plans to speak during the 6 p.m. hour Monday, an aide told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

His remarks will be in-line with the theme for the opening day of the convention: "Make America Wealthy Once Again."

"That first night is going to be about how to make America wealthy again,” Johnson told a Spectrum News reporter in Washington D.C. “So I'll certainly talk about obviously the harm done by democratic governance."

He spoke at the 2016 RNC in Cleveland as he sought a second Senate term. In a speech focused on national security, he went after former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and his opponent, Feingold.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: What to know about Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson