Democrats Colin Allred and Julie Johnson sparred over ethics and immigration this week in an increasingly contentious congressional race.
What began as a policy discussion in advance of the March 3 primary quickly turned personal at a meeting with The Dallas Morning News’ editorial board.
Stock trades: Allred zeroed in on her purchase of stock in Palantir Technologies, a contractor that assists immigration officials with deportations.
The first trade came days before President Donald Trump took office last year, promising the “largest mass deportation in American history.”
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“We have to have representatives who will do what’s in the public interest first,” Allred said. “All that has to be balanced.”
Johnson said portraying her asset sales as improper was “not fair.”
U.S. Rep. Julie Johnson speaks during the Congressional Forum at JW Marriott Dallas Arts District, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025, in Dallas.
Chitose Suzuki / Staff Photographer
Paper trail: Financial disclosures show Johnson bought stock Jan. 15 and Feb. 12, 2025. She sold the shares in April and June of 2025, with each transaction netting between $1,001 and $15,000.
Johnson told The News she began divesting her stock portfolio in March 2025. She sits on the House Homeland Security Committee and has criticized Trump’s aggressive immigration and border security policies.
Allred called her stock purchase “a bit hypocritical.”
In response: Johnson said she halted her stock trading, divested those assets and co-sponsored legislation to ban congressional stock trading.
“We had investable assets as I came into Congress,” Johnson said. “This past year, I’ve been in the process of divesting my individual stocks, my trades or sales.”
Johnson did not specifically address her purchase of Palantir or its timing at the editorial board meeting.
She said later in a statement her holdings were managed by a third party to avoid conflicts. “Aside from the decision to divest, I had no input on individual stock trades,” she said.
Former United States Representative Colin Allred greets the crowd during MLK Day parade, on Monday, Jan. 19, 2026, in Dallas .
Shafkat Anowar / Staff Photographer
Counterpunch:
Johnson slammed Allred for voting for the Laken Riley Act, a measure named for a 22-year-old Georgia student killed by an undocumented Venezuelan migrant who previously had been arrested for shoplifting.
The law mandates detention of migrants, including those who have been permitted to seek asylum, if accused of theft, burglary, shoplifting and other crimes.
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Johnson said the law, which she opposed, allows deportation without “proper due process hearings.”
“You could be deported because somebody accuses you of stealing a pack of gum, whether it’s true or not, and that is wrong,” she said.
Allred called his vote supporting the bill “a tough one.” He noted it came under the Biden administration, which he said he trusted to handle enforcement more responsibly than Trump’s.
Redistricting shuffle: The Allred-Johnson matchup in District 33 is one of the few competitive congressional primaries in Texas.
Johnson represents District 32, which the GOP-led Legislature redrew to favor a Republican candidate. After the map survived judicial review, Johnson, who lives in Farmers Branch, jumped into in the heavily Democratic District 33.
Allred, a former NFL player and three-term congressman from District 32, joined the race after ending a second bid for the U.S. Senate.