A third-generation family farmer, Roger Johnson was elected North Dakota Commissioner of Agriculture in 1996.

Commissioner Johnson is a native of Turtle Lake, where he owns and operates the 1,200-acre diversified farm first homesteaded by his grandfather. He is a graduate of North Dakota State University with a degree in agricultural economics.

Commissioner Johnson has an extensive background in agricultural mediation, helping farmers resolve disputes with creditors and government agencies. He was a senior negotiator with the North Dakota Credit Review Board from 1986 to 1989, a farm credit counselor with the Department of Agriculture from 1984 to 1988, and administrator of the North Dakota Agricultural Mediation Service from 1989 to 1996.

As Commissioner of Agriculture, he serves on the three-member State Industrial Commission, which acts as the board of directors for the state-owned Bank of North Dakota and State Mill and Elevator. He is also a member of the State Board of Tax Equalization, State Water Commission and many other board and commissions. Commissioner Johnson is past president of the McLean County Farmers Union, a past director of the North Dakota Farmers Union and past national chairman of the Coalition of Agricultural Mediation Programs.

He is a member of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church. Commissioner Johnson, his wife Anita, and their three children live in Bismarck.