From the age of 12, Carly Johnson knew she wanted a future that included a mix of politics and law. In seventh grade, she played the plaintiff's attorney in a mock trial, representing a client bitten by a rabid dog.
She won. It was followed by a mock Congress where she proposed legislation to fight accidental overdoses.
"Right there I knew that was a great forum to help people and to address problems that people were impacted by every day," she said.
Johnson, now 23, is a first-year student at Mitchell Hamline School of Law in St. Paul. And last November she claimed a new title: Oak Park Heights City Council member, the youngest in the city's history.
Only two months into her term, Johnson said she's been mainly learning how to be a local government official. Mayor Mary McComber said that she's learning fast.
Johnson "brings a fresh and different perspective to the council," McComber said. "She listens, she communicates, and she is not afraid to speak up … which is very important if [the council] wants to work as a team."
The door opened for Johnson last summer when Council Member Mark Swenson announced that he would not seek re-election. Margot Rheinberger, a family friend who has known Johnson for years, called her when she heard about Swenson.
As her first day of law school approached, Johnson filed for office and promptly began knocking on doors even though she was running unopposed for the at-large seat. She was mistaken for a high school student multiple times.
