Jay W. Johnson was the director of the United States Mint

United States Mint

The United States Mint primarily produces circulating coinage for the United States to conduct its trade and commerce. The Mint was created by Congress with the Coinage Act of 1792, and placed within the Department of State...

, Democratic

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 member of the United States House of Representatives

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 from Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

, and a former television news anchor in the Green Bay

Green Bay, Wisconsin

Green Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...

 area.

Johnson was born in Bessemer, Michigan

Bessemer, Michigan

Bessemer is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 1,914. It is the county seat of Gogebic County....

. He graduated from Gogebic Community College

Gogebic Community College

Gogebic Community College is a public two-year college located in Ironwood, Michigan, United States, and was founded as Ironwood Junior College in 1932...

 in 1963 and Northern Michigan University

Northern Michigan University

Northern Michigan University is a four-year college public university established in 1899 located in Marquette, in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. With a population of nearly 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students, Northern Michigan University is the Upper Peninsula's largest...

 in 1965. Johnson was an information specialist with the United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

 from 1966 until 1968. He was on the board of directors of the Wisconsin United Way. Johnson received a master's degree from Michigan State University

Michigan State University

Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...

 in 1970.

Journalist

He was a broadcaster and journalist working in Michigan, Indiana, Florida and for 16 years in Green Bay, Wisconsin for WFRV (Channel 5), then WLUK (Channel 11) from 1981 until 1996.

Politician

In 1996, Johnson was elected to Congress

United States Congress

The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....

 from after 18-year incumbent Toby Roth

Toby Roth

Tobias Anton Roth is a former Republican United States congressman who represented Wisconsin's 8th congressional district. He served in the United States House of Representatives from 1979 to 1997, when he did not run for re-election. Previously, Roth served in the Wisconsin State Assembly from...

 retired. He was only the third Democrat to represent the district in the 20th century. He unsuccessfully ran for re-election against State Representative Mark Green in 1998. From 2000 to 2001 he was the 36th Director of the United States Mint

United States Mint

The United States Mint primarily produces circulating coinage for the United States to conduct its trade and commerce. The Mint was created by Congress with the Coinage Act of 1792, and placed within the Department of State...

. After leaving the U.S. Mint, he was self-employed, selling wholesale coins and also the Chief Numismatist for The Franklin Mint.

On June 29, 2009, Goldline International, Inc. announced that Mr. Johnson had become a spokesperson for their company.

On October 17, 2009, Johnson died at his home in Bristow, Virginia

Bristow, Virginia

Bristow is an unincorporated town in Prince William County, Virginia, United States. The population was 8,910 in the 2000 census, and the 2009 estimate was 15,137....

, in suburban Washington, D.C., after collapsing of an apparent heart attack

Myocardial infarction

Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...

.