The mob on January 6 went on a rampage, injuring 140 police officers.
The White House has created a new web page to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the January 6 riot, painting an ominous picture of Democrats.
Adam Johnson, the Florida man who became known as “The Podium Man” after a photo of him posing at Nancy Pelosi’s podium during the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot went viral, is running for office in the Sunshine State.
Mr. Johnson has filed to run for District 6 on the Manatee County Commission. He was arrested in 2021 for involvement in rioting and lectern theft, and later pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges.
The podium was returned to Pelosi, who stood there as she signed articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump. President Trump pardoned Johnson and about 1,600 others on January 20, 2025, the day he was inaugurated for his second term.
“For too long, forgotten conservatives have watched county governments squander money, cut corrupt deals and ignore issues important to working families,” Johnson said on his campaign website.
Here’s what we know about Mr. Johnson and his bid for elected office.
What is Adam Johnson’s platform?
He operates primarily on an affordability platform, calling for lower living costs for working families, sustainable infrastructure growth, reducing traffic congestion, and cracking down on corruption and wasteful contracts.
“This is what ‘America First’ looks like at the county level,” Johnson wrote on his campaign website. “This is what MAGA does.”
Johnson will challenge incumbent Commissioner Jason Bearden, who received 61.5% of the vote in the district’s 2022 Republican primary.
Who is Adam Johnson?
Johnson, who was born in the small town of Millington, Tennessee, has lived most of his life in Southwest Florida, USA TODAY reported in 2021. He has long light brown hair, cross tattoos on his chest and left arm, has a fishing license, makes furniture, and attends a Baptist church.
USA TODAY used public records, news accounts and social media to piece together Johnson’s story.
When Johnson was in his late teens or early 20s, Manatee County police arrested him on two separate misdemeanor marijuana charges. In 2005, he violated his probation by failing to submit required supervision reports along with proof that he had completed community service and substance abuse counseling. At the time, he was living at his mother’s home in Bradenton and was a chef by trade, according to police records.
Financial problems appear to have caused a rift in his marriage with his first wife. The couple was evicted from their apartment in July 2010 for $1,098 in arrears. According to court records, their divorce was finalized in January of the following year.
Within five months, Johnson remarried a doctor and his fortunes began to change. The two moved into Parrish’s home together and by December 2015 had sold the home for a profit of nearly $60,000, according to real estate deeds.
Adam Johnson sues Manatee County, Florida over unrecovered attorney fees
In March 2025, Johnson sued Manatee County and six county commissioners for failing to collect legal fees from former commissioner and Bradenton Times publisher Joe McClash. The case stems from a 2023 lawsuit filed by Manatee County over the repeal of local wetland protections.
As reported by the Herald Tribune, part of the USA TODAY Network, Johnson alleges Manatee County commissioners voted “fraudulently” in Joe McClash’s favor after the 2024 election by withholding attorney fees related to a lawsuit he filed against the former board to remove all local wetland protections, many of which were implemented during his term and exceeded state-level policies.
How Adam Johnson was captured after the January 6th Capitol breach
Alan Mestel, a Southwest Florida photographer who was following the Capitol breach online, saw a photo of a man wearing a Trump toque carrying Pelosi’s lectern. And he knew the man’s name: Adam Christian Johnson.
The two men, both from Manatee County in southwestern Florida, had run into each other before, USA TODAY previously reported. On the day of the riot, Mestel filled out a form on the FBI’s website stating what he knew about Johnson and was contacted by FBI agents by the next morning.
“This is a serious case,” federal prosecutor Patrick Scruggs told the judge at Johnson’s first court appearance. “Everyone involved in last week’s attack on the Capitol, including Mr. Johnson, must be held accountable for their actions.”
Contributors: Josh Salman, Carlos R. Munoz, USA TODAY
