Fmr Sen Leroy Johnson 1st Elected Black to Lie in State at GA Capitol

Democrats and Republicans put aside their differences to honor a political trailblazer in Georgia. 

Former Senator Leroy Johnson served in the Georgia State Senate from 1963 to 1975, making him the first black state senator to be elected to the legislature after reconstruction. No African Americans had been elected to public office in the U.S. Southeast since 1907.

Many gathered at the Georgia State Capitol rotunda as Former Senator Johnson Lies in State. Current Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, the Former Senator’s wife Cleopatra Whittington-Johnson, along with Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church Sr. Pastor Raphael Warnock and members of the senate all shared stories and kind words about the late senator. One sentiment that rang through was that Johnson fought a good fight under the gold dome and believed that one should stay-the-course, stay focused, and fight the issues. Many remembered him saying, “There are no true friends, no true enemies, just true issues.”