Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson (D) declared on Friday that he will abandon the Democratic Party and will join the Republican Party.
Johnson said in the opinion piece that “American cities need Republicans — and Republicans need American cities.”
Prior to being chosen as mayor in 2019, Johnson served in the Texas senate for nine years as a longtime Democrat. He has, however, made the decision to leave the group because his ideas no longer coincide with theirs.
Although Johnson’s job is officially nonpartisan, the Texas Tribune reports that his choice to leave the Democratic Party has made Dallas, along with Fort Worth, the second-largest city in Texas to be managed by a Republican-affiliated mayor.
“I have no intention of changing my approach to my job. But today I am changing my party affiliation,” Johnson wrote. “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.”
Mayor Johnson claims in his letter that he is joining the GOP because he thinks it is the only party that genuinely supports law and order and budgetary conservatism. He contends that these ideas are crucial for the survival of the large urban centers in America. Additionally, he attacks the Democratic Party for its erratic and poll-driven adherence to these values.
Johnson also said that Democratic policies have led to “disarray” in blue US cities, such as New York City, Chicago, and Philadelphia, where violent crime has been ascending.
“Mayors and other local elected officials have failed to make public safety a priority or to exercise fiscal restraint. Most of these local leaders are proud Democrats who view cities as laboratories for liberalism rather than as havens for opportunity and free enterprise,” he explained.
He continued that local tax money is frequently used to support initiatives that exacerbate issues like homelessness, criminalization of the criminal element, and the difficulty of earning a life for the average person. He also blames local Democrats for engaging in “virtue signaling” and putting forth substandard government initiatives rather than concentrating on building safer, stronger, and more vibrant cities.
