“Next spring, I will be voting in the Republican primary,” Johnson wrote in a piece with the headline “America’s cities need Republicans, and I’m becoming one.”
Johnson was elected to the nonpartisan office — meaning candidates don’t run as Democrats or Republicans — in 2019 and reelected in May, but said he will leave the position in 2027 as a member of the GOP.
“American cities need Republicans — and Republicans need American cities,” Johnson wrote.
He went on to say that he was switching because American cities are “in disarray,” as local Democratic leaders haven’t, in his view, made public safety a priority. He also claimed Democrats spent tax dollars in a way that made homelessness worse while “finding new ways to thumb their noses at Republicans,” rather than focusing on solving problems.
Johnson called for other mayors to stand up for law and order while reducing taxes.
Republicans across the country have in recent years attacked Democrats over public safety, even with the rise of tougher-on-crime Democrats who have vowed to address violence and fund police.
Some local Democratic leaders were not surprised by the move, saying the mayor had governed more toward the center than they felt Dallas voters wanted. Johnson recently voted against the city’s nearly $5 billion budget passed by the city council, citing insufficient cuts of the property tax rate, and has supported anti-crime initiatives.
“He’s proven to be what we thought he was,” Kardal Coleman, chair of the Dallas County Democratic Party, told The Washington Post. “It’s an insult to the voters in the city of Dallas, who were sold on a bait and switch. Mayor Johnson is abandoning his values and, unfortunately, the people and voters of Dallas.”
President Biden won Dallas County handily in 2020, beating Donald Trump by more than 30 percentage points.
Statewide Democrats similarly criticized Johnson’s party switch, adding that they were grateful Johnson left the party.
“Given his long-standing affinity with Republican leaders and ideology … this announcement is neither surprising nor unwelcome,” wrote Gilberto Hinojosa and Shay Wyrick Cathey, respectively the chair and vice chair of the Texas Democratic Party, in a joint statement. “But the voters of Dallas deserved to know where he stood before he ran for reelection as Mayor.”
The announcement from Johnson comes a week after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton was acquitted by the state Senate on 16 charges of bribery, unfitness for office and abuse of office after a 10-day trial. The acquittal could catapult the conservative Republican’s political future both in Texas and potentially nationally, leaving ripple effects across the state.
Coleman wondered whether Johnson was making the change because he, too, has long-term political ambitions.
“Obviously, he’s seeking to run for higher office,” Coleman said, speculating that Johnson could be angling to eventually run for state attorney general or for the U.S. Senate.
Johnson did not immediately return a request for comment.
The head of the Dallas GOP said the party was “thrilled” the mayor was joining Republicans.
“We look forward to working with Mayor Johnson to protect our individual freedoms and our citizens,” Jennifer Stoddard Hajdu said in a statement to The Post.
Gov. Greg Abbott (R) praised Johnson for joining his party, saying the mayor is pro-police.
“Texas is getting more Red every day,” Abbott wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
There have been a number of high-profile party switchers this year in states across the country, including Tricia Cotham, a North Carolina lawmaker who joined the GOP, giving the party a veto-proof state legislature.
Johnson ran unopposed in his reelection campaign, winning with more than 90 percent of the vote.
