Theodore Johnson

Theodore (Ted) R. Johnson is a senior advisor, providing counsel on policy and strategy to the Executive Office, and leading New America’s flagship US@250 initiative. His research explores the role that race plays in electoral politics and its influence on the national narrative and the American identity.

A former New America National Fellow, Ted is a retired U.S. Navy commander following a two-decade career that included service as a White House Fellow and speechwriter to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Prior to New America, he was a senior fellow and senior director of the Fellows Program at the Brennan Center for Justice as well as a research manager at Deloitte.

Ted’s writing has appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, National Review, and Atlantic, among other publications. He is a writer for The Bulwark and author of When the Stars Begin to Fall: Overcoming Racism and Renewing the Promise of America (Grove Atlantic, 2021). He’s currently working on a book about race and American democracy’s first principles.

Johnson is a proud HBCU graduate, holding a BS in mathematics from Hampton University as well as an ALM with a concentration in international relations from Harvard University and a doctorate of law and policy from Northeastern University.