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ABC News' Bob Woodruff Reports: Senator Tim Johnson, the South Dakota Democrat who suffered a near fatal brain hemorrhage last December, will seek reelection in 2008. Johnson greeted South Dakota voters Tuesday, in his first public appearance since falling ill. We continue to wish Johnson well, but now that Johnson decided to seek reelection it's time for the gloves to come off. Johnson won reelection in 2002 by just 524 votes and was a tempting target even before he became ill. Two Republicans, State Representative Joel Dykstra and business man Sam Kephart, are running for Johnson's seat.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- After a life-threatening brain hemorrhage and months of recuperation, Sen. Tim Johnson is greeting home state voters Tuesday in his first public appearance since falling ill last year. Johnson, D-S.D., is expected to return to the Senate for votes in early September, according to spokeswoman Julianne Fisher. His return comes almost nine months after he fell ill in the Capitol. Tuesday's celebration in Sioux Falls is a carefully choreographed gathering that could take on the appearance of a campaign event — Johnson is up for re-election next year but has not yet said whether he will run...

Calling national Republicans “sad” and “desperate,” former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) decried their pledge to begin pursuing an aggressive campaign against his ill former South Dakota Senate colleague, Sen. Tim Johnson (D). In an e-mail to supporters issued by Johnson’s campaign committee, Daschle criticizes National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) Chairman John Ensign (Nev.) for saying he would push forward with an effort to defeat Johnson in 2008. (snip) “Tim’s focus should be on his recovery to serve the people of South Dakota, not fending off classless political attacks from national Republicans,” Daschle wrote. “That means we’re not going...

Democratic Sen. Tim Johnson is returning to his home state of South Dakota for the first time since suffering a life-threatening brain hemorrhage eight months ago. The senator has been recovering at hospitals and in his Fairfax, Va. home and has not appeared in public since he fell ill. He will travel to South Dakota this month and is expected to return to the Senate in September. Johnson has been undergoing speech therapy and is expected to use a motorized scooter to get around in the Capitol. In a statement released Tuesday by his office, Johnson said his doctors have...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Democratic Sen. Tim Johnson is returning to his home state of South Dakota for the first time since suffering a life-threatening brain hemorrhage eight months ago. The senator has been recovering at hospitals and in his Fairfax, Va. home and has not appeared in public since he fell ill. He will travel to South Dakota this month and is expected to return to the Senate in September. Johnson has been undergoing speech therapy and is expected to use a scooter to get around in the Capitol. In a statement released Tuesday by his office, Johnson said his...

Democratic Sen. Tim Johnson of South Dakota is still recovering from a December brain hemorrhage, but his office appears to be beefing up his staff for a 2008 re-election campaign. Drey Samuelson, Johnson's chief of staff, said Wednesday that the office has hired Steve Jarding as deputy chief of staff. Jarding, who will work for the senator's congressional office in Rapid City, S.D., is a veteran political consultant who served as a top strategist for James Webb, the Virginia Democrat who upset Republican Sen. George Allen last November.

The latest wrinkle in the recovery of Tim Johnson is his still-to-be-determined return to the Senate after a debilitating brain hemorrhage -- and the complications of it for South Dakota Republicans who are considering challenging him. Two Republicans, Joel Dykstra and Sam Kephart, have declared their intent to challenge him, but many consider GOP Gov. Mike Rounds the most formidable opponent. And even Johnson's declared challengers carefully avoid any comments slighting the recovering senator. In his absence this year, surrogates offer plenty of projections about when he will make his comeback. But their scenarios add to the uncertainty -- even...

South Dakota state Rep. Joel Dykstra (R) has officially entered the race for the Republican nomination to face Sen. Tim Johnson (D) in 2008. Dykstra filed a statement of candidacy with the Federal Election Commission on Thursday and declared himself a “candidate for U.S. Senate.” “I am very appreciative of the encouragement that I have received in my exploration of a run for the U.S. Senate,” Dykstra said. “My family and I are humbled by the expressions of support we have received from many people from across the state.” Dykstra is the first major candidate to enter the race and...

South Dakota state Rep. Joel Dykstra (R) has officially entered the race for the Republican nomination to face Sen. Tim Johnson (D) in 2008. Dykstra filed a statement of candidacy with the Federal Election Commission on Thursday and declared himself a “candidate for U.S. Senate.” “I am very appreciative of the encouragement that I have received in my exploration of a run for the U.S. Senate,” Dykstra said. “My family and I are humbled by the expressions of support we have received from many people from across the state.” Dykstra is the first major candidate to enter the race and...

Under normal circumstances, the 2008 contest for the Senate seat held by South Dakota Democrat Tim Johnson would already be in full swing. There was never a doubt that Republican strategists would put the race on their short list of serious takeover targets for the 2008 campaign, given South Dakota’s overall Republican leanings and Johnson’s razor-thin 2002 victory over GOP challenger John Thune (who now holds the state’s other Senate seat). But the fight for the seat became secondary in December, as Johnson suffered a brain hemorrhage that put him in a fight for his life. Only now — after...

South Dakota has seen some fiercely competitive congressional elections in recent years. As the next Senate campaign approaches, however, partisans on both sides are uncharacteristically quiet. They are deferring — for now — to Democratic Sen. Tim Johnson, who is recovering from a brain hemorrhage he suffered in December. He is not yet able to walk unassisted and is undergoing speech therapy, preparing for an eventual return to the Senate. It is still unclear whether Johnson will seek his third term next year. He won re-election in 2002 by just 524 votes and was considered a likely target for the...

Democratic Sen. Tim Johnson of South Dakota is finally home after a brain hemorrhage last December. The senator was discharged from the National Rehabilitation Hospital on Friday, his office said Monday, and is now recuperating at his house in suburban Washington. "It is wonderful to take this next step with family and friends," Johnson said in the office statement. "As I continue with my therapy, I also get more and more work from the office. The doctors tell me to pace myself and prepare for the long road, but I am determined to get back in the saddle." In callous...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Sen. Tim Johnson's Washington office is being made wheelchair-accessible in preparation for his return from rehabilitation for a brain hemorrhage. When Johnson will come back to the Senate is still not clear. The South Dakota Democrat has been in a private, undisclosed rehabilitation facility since February, when he was released from the George Washington University Hospital in Washington. He is not able to walk and has limited use of his right side. Johnson spokeswoman Julianne Fisher said Wednesday that the senator would be in the rehabilitation facility "for a while longer" and would undergo outpatient therapy before...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- South Dakota Sen. Tim Johnson issued his first public statement Tuesday since suffering a life-threatening brain hemorrhage three months ago, and his office released the first photos of the Democratic senator since he became ill. "I want to thank the people of South Dakota and all of our dear friends for their support and prayers," Johnson said in a statement released by his office. "This has been an unexpected journey and there is a long road in front of me. I am determined and focused on my recovery, and I look forward to returning to the Senate...

WASHINGTON — More than two months after suffering a brain hemorrhage, South Dakota Sen. Tim Johnson has left a Washington hospital and entered a private rehabilitation facility, his office said Tuesday. A spokeswoman refused to say whether the senator remained in Washington or was moved to a facility in South Dakota, citing family concerns about media scrutiny. "They just want him to focus on getting better and not worried about outside cameras snapping away," said spokeswoman Julianne Fisher.

WASHINGTON - Sen. Tim Johnson (news, bio, voting record) is reading news clippings and starting to do some office work from the hospital, almost two months after suffering a life-threatening brain hemorrhage. "At this point, he has requested more contact with office and is looking for updates from staff," his office said in a statement Friday. Spokeswoman Julianne Fisher said the South Dakota Democrat is starting slowly. "We do not anticipate him back (in the Senate) for several weeks," Fisher said. "We are bringing work to him rather than him coming to us. His first priority still is rehabilitation." Johnson...

Note: I am excerpting only some recent opinions from this long article. Most of the remainder has been posted on FR in one form or another; however, the article is well written and clear. ...His doctors say Johnson improves each week. He watches CNN. He was able to remind his therapist of his youngest grandson's name and cheer on the Indianapolis Colts. He participates in three hours of physical, occupational and speech therapy a day, and it's anticipated that recovery could take months. Three weeks ago, he was moved from the intensive care unit to the in-patient rehabilitation unit. David...

WASHINGTON - Sen. Tim Johnson (news, bio, voting record) is taking part in three hours of physical, occupational and speech therapy every day, and his tracheotomy tube has been removed from his throat, doctors said Friday. Johnson, who suffered a brain hemorrhage over a month ago, has been working with parallel bars and participating in speech therapy, including naming objects, his office said in a statement. That includes strengthening exercises to gain mobility on his right side, said Dr. Philip Marion, head of rehabilitation at George Washington University Hospital. Johnson's right side was weak when he arrived at the hospital...

WASHINGTON - Democratic Sen. Tim Johnson of South Dakota is still recovering from a December brain hemorrhage, but his office appears to be beefing up his staff for a 2008 re-election campaign. Drey Samuelson, Johnson's chief of staff, said Wednesday that the office has hired Steve Jarding as deputy chief of staff. Jarding, who will work for the senator's congressional office in Rapid City, S.D., is a veteran political consultant who served as a top strategist for James Webb, the Virginia Democrat who upset Republican Sen. George Allen last November. Jarding is a native of South Dakota and worked for...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Sen. Tim Johnson (news, bio, voting record) of South Dakota, whose brain surgery last month raised speculation that Democrats could lose control of the Senate, is able to talk and has been transferred to a rehabilitation unit to begin "aggressive therapy," his office said on Thursday. "Yesterday, Senator Johnson underwent an MRI which showed that his speech centers were spared of injury. This is confirmed by the fact that he is following commands and has started to say words," neurosurgeon Dr. Vivek Deshmukh said. His office said Johnson was transferred from an intensive care unit to...