Dallas Mayor Switches To GOP Just Months After Reelection

Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson, who served in the Texas Legislature for nine years as a Democrat before being elected as mayor of Dallas in 2019 as a Democrat, has announced he is now a Republican. Johnson ran for reelection (as a Democrat) unopposed this past spring. His party switch makes Dallas the largest city in the country with a Republican mayor. https://twitter.com/TexasTribune/status/1705248853144789038 From the Texas Tribune:

“Today I am changing my party affiliation,” Johnson wrote in an op-ed published Friday in The Wall Street Journal. “Next spring, I will be voting in the Republican primary. When my career in elected office ends in 2027 on the inauguration of my successor as mayor, I will leave office as a Republican.”

Johnson’s switch came as little shock to Dallas political observers, who said he has been signaling for some time his leaning toward the GOP — and his distancing from Democrats.

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.

State Rep. John Bryant, a Dallas Democrat, took to social media to offer his commentary. https://twitter.com/johnbryantfortx/status/1705253419299242264

Then he needs to resign. Dallas elected a democrat mayor. Not a republican

— 😇 (@DanielleV_89) September 22, 2023

If a candidate, then elected official does a bait and switch, they should lose their seat. This is ridiculous.

— Bev @bevdower ☮️ ✈️ 🌎 😷 & TRAVEL 💙🌊🌈 (@Bevdower) September 22, 2023