Johnson, Richard Mentor

Richard Mentor Johnson, (1781-1850), 9th vice president of the United States. He was born in Beargrass (now Louisville), Ky., on Oct. 17, 1781. He studied law at Transylvania University and was admitted to the bar in 1802. Johnson was elected to the state legislature in 1804. Johnson won the vice presidential nomination on the Democratic ticket with Martin Van Buren in 1836. Van Buren won a majority in the electoral college, but Johnson did not, and for the only time the choice of a vice president went to the U.S. Senate, which elected Johnson.