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Annise Parker Wins Historic Houston Mayoral Race

12/13/09-by Bridgette P. LaVictoire
Yesterday, Annise Parker won the runoff election to become the mayor of Houston, Texas despite a last minute effort by Conservative groups to engineer a win for Gene Locke. Her coalition of inside the loop Democrats, Moderate Republicans and young activists won the day with almost 53% of the vote. In recent weeks, the anti-LGBT rhetoric out of her opponents supporters has become almost poisonous. Parker has been the City Controller for last several terms, and her experience in that position likely made the biggest difference in the race. Her victory shows the waning influence of the ability of groups to use a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity as a wedge issue. It is a small step forward.

In order to become mayor, Parker had to promise not to use her position to expand LGBT rights inside the city; however, the bigger issue was between the candidate who had experience working on the city’s $4 billion budget and the candidate who was a former attorney general of the city. In the end, the voters chose the candidate with the background in fiscal responsibility. In many ways, Parker won because she was willing to make it clear to the citizens of Houston that the fiscal problems of the nation mean that there are things that the city will not be able to do.

The campaign between the two lasted five weeks with Parker on the offensive going after Locke’s record of being a lawyer who defended unpopular local government agencies with financial difficulties. His supporters tried to make a huge wedge issue out of her sexuality, which did not materialize as a major issue for her supporters.

At her victory speech, Parker introduced her family, including her partner Kathy Hubbard and their three children as well as her mother Kay Parker. In her speech, she stated Hear me: The city is on your side,” she said. “I learned about the problems and the needs and hopes of our city at the neighborhood level. I understand what needs to be done to move us forward. I promise to give to citizens an administration of honesty, integrity and transparency. The only special interest will be the public. We are in this together. We rise or fall together.”

Gene Locke gave a short concession speech in which he called for unity within the city. “Don’t let past disappointments, past anger, past frustrations guide us into the future. Let’s unite and work together,” he said.

In the end, the victory was historic in that Parker is not only the first lesbian voted mayor of Houston, and the first lesbian voted mayor of such a major city, but she is also won despite not being endorsed by the majority of Houston’s business community.