Dallas mayor leaves Democratic Party, switches to GOP: 'American cities need Republicans'

Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson was elected in 2019 and has been a vocal supporter of law enforcement

The mayor of one of the largest cities in the United States announced in a Friday op-ed that he is leaving the Democratic Party and becoming a Republican. 

In a Wall Street Journal op-ed with the headline "America’s Cities Need Republicans, and I’m Becoming One", Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson explains that he is leaving the Democratic Party because "the future of America’s great urban centers depends on the willingness of the nation’s mayors to champion law and order and practice fiscal conservatism."

"Our cities desperately need the genuine commitment to these principles (as opposed to the inconsistent, poll-driven commitment of many Democrats) that has long been a defining characteristic of the GOP," Johnson wrote. 

"In other words, American cities need Republicans—and Republicans need American cities," Johnson continued. "When my political hero Theodore Roosevelt was born, only 20% of Americans lived in urban areas. By the time he was elected president, that share had doubled to 40%. Today, it stands at 80%. As America’s cities go, so goes America."

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Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson speaks during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Host City Announcement at the AT&T Discovery District on June 16, 2022 in Dallas, Texas. (Omar Vega/Getty Images)

Johnson has been a vocal supporter of police as other cities, including the Texas capitol of Austin, have moved to defund police departments in the wake of the George Floyd riots. 

In February, Johnson posted a Fox News Digital article on social media outlining how Austin police officers are retiring in droves due to low morale resulting from defunding and encouraged those officers to move to Dallas and work there.

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First lady Jill Biden is greeted by Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson, second from left, Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Texas, obscured, and Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins as she arrives at Love Field Airport in Dallas, on June 29, 2021.  (Photo by CAROLYN KASTER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

"When you have a mayor who supports the police not only in his words but his actions you see what happens to crime in your city," Austin Police Retired Officers Association Dennis Farris told Fox News Digital on Friday. 

"Mayor Johnson has led from the front and it showed when he was re-elected without one single challenger that’s unheard of in a major US city."

Dallas, Texas skyline (iStock)

Dallas saw a significant decrease in crime after Johnson took office in 2019 that Johnson told Fox News Digital in 2021 he attributed that success to three things – a strong police chief, having "a budget that reflects public safety being your city's top priority," and ensuring there’s "community buy-in" for crime reduction. 

Fox News Digital's Danielle Wallace contributed to this report

Andrew Mark Miller is a reporter at Fox News. Find him on Twitter @andymarkmiller and email tips to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..