WASHINGTON D.C. (KWWL) -- The first two days of the 118th Congress have been a tumultuous one, with no Speaker of the House having been selected after six rounds of voting. Until a Speaker is elected, a University of Iowa graduate currently controls the House of Representatives.
Cheryl L. Johnson is the House Clerk who has presided over the voting process in the new Congress. Johnson has served as the 36th House Clerk since 2019, when she was sworn in by former Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Johnson, who was born in New Orleans, graduated from the University of Iowa with a bachelor's degree in journalism and mass communication. Johnson also earned her law degree from Howard University in Washington D.C.
She is also a graduate of the senior management program at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government.
Johnson served around 20 years in the House before she went on to join the Smithsonian Institute for 10 years. There, she served as Director of the Smithsonian's Office of Government Relations.
Following her tenure at the Smithsonian, Johnson returned to the House where she currently presides.
