Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson leaves Democrat party and is Joining the Republican Party of Texas

https://archive.ph/2023.09.22-164622/https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2023/09/22/dallas-mayor-eric-johnson-announces-he-is-switching-to-republican-party/

Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson says he is now a Republican https://www.fox4news.com/news/dallas-mayor-eric-johnson-republican

Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson switches to Republican Party https://www.texastribune.org/2023/09/22/dallas-mayor-eric-johnson-republican/

“Too often, local tax dollars are spent on policies that exacerbate homelessness, coddle criminals and make it harder for ordinary people to make a living,” Johnson wrote in the op-ed. “And too many local Democrats insist on virtue signaling — proposing half-baked government programs that aim to solve every single societal ill — and on finding new ways to thumb their noses at Republicans at the state or federal level. Enough. This makes for good headlines, but not for safer, stronger, more vibrant cities.”

The switch puts Johnson out of step with voters in solidly-Democratic Dallas, some observers said. Dallas County went heavily for Joe Biden over Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election, with Biden carrying the county by more than 30 percentage points.

“I don't believe that it sets the tone for where the priorities are,” Dallas City Council Member Adam Bazaldua said. “In fact, that's why I believe it would have been nice for voters to have the opportunity of knowing that party affiliation prior to going to the ballot box in May.”

Johnson didn’t mention his party switch as he spoke for about an hour during a Texas Tribune panel event Friday morning in Austin. Johnson noted the nonpartisan nature of his office and said he wants to see a more conservative approach to how Dallas spends its money, arguing that it's currently inefficient and the city could cut plenty of welfare programs that he believes only a minuscule amount of people use. Polling shows that most Dallasites want lower taxes, he said.

“I don't even know what these services are that some people are referring to that they're just so essential to poor people in the city,” he said. “I don't know what they're using.”

Texas Republicans were quick to embrace Johnson as one of their own.

"Texas is getting more Red every day," Gov. Greg Abbott wrote on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. "He’s pro law enforcement & won’t tolerate leftist agendas."

“To my friend and former colleague, welcome to the Republican Party!” Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan, a Beaumont Republican, said on X. “Mayor [Johnson] is absolutely right. Conservative policies are the key to safe, thriving, and successful cities. His leadership is a shining example of that. Great news.”

Democrats, meanwhile, took Johnson’s announcement as a betrayal — though perhaps not an unexpected one.

“It's really unfortunate to see Mayor Johnson switch parties but also to turn his back on the electorate that's gotten him this far in his political career,” said Kardal Coleman, chair of the Dallas County Democratic Party. “This is no surprise to us. It’s the worst kept secret in Texas politics, but he's choosing his personal ambitions over the good of the whole of Texas.”

After his reelection this year, Johnson invited Texas’ two Republican U.S. senators, John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, to attend his inauguration — which some observers complained improperly injected partisanship into a nonpartisan space.