Nashville Davidson County Register of Deeds Karen Johnson is the first African American and the first woman to be elected to the position. She was first elected in 2018 and re-elected in 2022 without opposition.

Karen is known across Nashville as a driven worker for the community and a creative corporate thinker. However, few Nashvillians know her life journey. She lost her parents, both renowned educators with Historic Fisk University and Metro Schools, at an early age. A graduate of public schools, she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration at Tennessee State University and an MBA in Management at Trevecca Nazarene University – all while raising two small boys and working full-time.

Karen also is a Certified Public Manager and a Certified Public Administrator through the University of Tennessee Institute for Public Service. She also completed the Local Government Leadership program at the UT Naifeh Center for Effective Leadership.

In the professional arena, Karen’s focus was on human resources and records management. She previously worked for the State of Tennessee, HCA, Shoney’s Inc., and Mercy Health Services.

With a passion for public service, Karen was elected twice as a Metro Council Member for District 29, winning first with 52% in a competitive five-way race without a runoff election and re-elected with 82%, which was the largest percentage of any contested race that year. She was also unanimously elected Council President Pro Tempore, served as chair of the Charter Revisions committee, and vice chair of the Rules, Confirmations, and Public Elections committee. She was elected to the Metro School Board and was appointed to the Metro Boards of Zoning Appeals and Parks and Recreation. Karen currently serves on the Metro Public Records Commission.

While serving on the Metro Council, Karen’s hard work paid off. Among her many accomplishments, she was instrumental in creating the Smith Springs Regional Community Center, which serves seniors and families. She also helped make Cane Ridge High School and Smith Springs Elementary School possible.

On Karen’s watch, the Una Sports Park facilities were upgraded, and restrooms were added. She also worked with veterans of the Civil Rights Movement. She helped bring about the first Civil Rights Art project for Nashville, located on the grounds of the Historic Metro Courthouse.

Over the course of her academic, corporate, and public service career, Karen has served as a leader in community organizations – Rotary Club of Nashville, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. (co-chair of Chapter Social Action/Connection Committee), Sister Cities of Nashville (Board member), Friends of Fort Negley (Board member), Women in Numbers (WIN), the Nashville Women’s Breakfast Club, 100 Black Women-Metro Nashville (current chair of Education Committee, previously served as a chair for the Sister-to-Sister Conference), Les Gemmes Incorporated Nashville Chapter, the Tennessee Women’s Political Caucus (past president), Cable, the Women’s Political Collaborative of Tennessee (past secretary), the Tennessee Woman Suffrage Monument (a founder), Women in Municipal Government (former board member), the Tennessee Municipal League (former board member), the National League of Cities (former board member, first Nashvillian and first female African American from Tennessee elected to serve at the national level), NLC Large Cities Council (past chair, vice chair) and NLC Transportation and Infrastructure Services committees (past vice chair), National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials (fellow), and TN/ARK (former regional director, board member).

She is a member of the County Officials Association of Tennessee (COAT), the Tennessee Registers Association, the Property Records Industry Association (PRIA), the Tennessee Land Title Association, the National Forum for Black Public Administrators (NFBPA), the International City-County Management Association (ICMA), a board member with the International Association of Government Officials (iGO), and the Lawyers Association for Women/Marion Griffin Chapter of Nashville. Karen is a member of the Nashville Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Tennessee Latin American Chamber of Commerce, Nashville Black Chamber of Commerce, Bellevue Harpeth Chamber of Commerce, Donelson Hermitage Chamber of Commerce, Old Hickory Chamber of Commerce, Nashville LGBT Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB)/Nashville Chapter, Donelson Hermitage Exchange Club, and the Hillsboro Brentwood Exchange Club.

She was named to the 2022-23 Leadership Middle Tennessee class, selected as one of the 2023 Women Who Rock Nashville Political Honorees, 2022 Women in Business by Nashville Lifestyles Magazine, and nominated for the 2021 Traditional Athena Award by Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., Alpha Delta Omega Chapter. She was a Nashville Business Journal Woman of Influence, one of The Tennessean’s 40 Under 40, a Nashville Chamber Emerging Leader, Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity Tau Lambda chapter public service award recipient, and she was honored by the Tennessee State University Women’s Center as a Woman of Legend and Merit in Government. She was a League of Women in Government Leadership Trailblazer finalist.

Karen is also a Leadership Nashville alumna and a graduate of the Young Leaders Council (Class 39). She completed Yale Campaign School, the Emerge Tennessee program, and the Transit Alliance Leadership Academy. She is participating in the Rotary Leadership Institute.

Under Karen’s leadership, the Nashville Davidson County Register of Deeds Office was named one of the Nashville Business Journal’s Best Places to Work (2021, 2024) based on a survey of employees.

Karen is a member of Mt. Zion Baptist Church, where she serves on the Usher Ministry.

Her husband, David Johnson, served honorably as a United States Marine. They have three sons, Jonathan, Christopher, and Dave, one granddaughter Kailee, and a French Bulldog named Nala. Karen’s children are graduates of Metro Nashville Public Schools.

Historical List of Davidson County Registers