Annise Parker

Annise Danette Parker (born May 17, 1956) is an American politician from the state of Texas. A Democrat, Parker served as the 61st Mayor of Houston, Texas, from 2010 until 2016. She also served as an at-large member of the Houston City Council from 1998 to 2003 and as city controller from 2004 to 2010.

Parker is Houston's second female mayor (after Kathy Whitmire). She is also one of the first openly gay mayors of a major U.S. city, with Houston being the most populous U.S. city to elect an openly gay mayor until Lori Lightfoot was elected mayor of Chicago in 2019.

Early life and education Parker was born in the Spring Branch community of Houston on May 17, 1956. was a bookkeeper. In 1971, when Parker was 15, her family moved to a U.S. Army post in Mannheim, Germany for two years.

Growing up, Parker was shy and suffered from extreme anxiety; her family nicknamed her "Turtle". She has maintained a turtle collection. During her senior year of high school, Parker participated in the school’s National Honor Society, Ecology Club, and Christian Youth Fellowship and was a high jumper and long jumper on the track team.

Parker began attending Rice University in 1974, working several jobs to pay for her room and board. In 2005, Parker completed Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government as a David Bohnett LGBTQ Victory Institute Leadership Fellow.

Career Prior to serving as an elected official, Parker worked in the oil and gas industry as a software analyst for over 20 years, including 18 years at Mosbacher Energy. In addition, she co-owned Inklings Bookshop with business partner Pokey Anderson from 1989 until 1999, and served as president of the Neartown Civic Association from 1995 to 1997.

Houston City Council Parker ran unsuccessfully for Houston City Council in District C in 1991. In 1995, she ran for City Council again, finishing third in a special election for At-Large Position 4 after Sheila Jackson Lee vacated the seat upon her election to Congress. In 1997, Parker prevailed in the runoff election for At-Large Position 1 to become Houston's first openly gay elected official. She was re-elected twice to the same seat in 1999 and 2001 without being forced to a run-off.

Houston City Controller In 2003, Parker was elected City Controller.

Mayor of Houston

2009 election

In 2009, Parker announced her candidacy for the office of Mayor of Houston in a video posted online to her campaign website. She was endorsed by several organizations and campaigned on a platform of better city security and financial efficiency. During the run-off election, Parker was endorsed by former rival Peter Hoyt Brown. The city's primary newspaper, the Houston Chronicle, endorsed Parker, citing her experience. Parker was elected mayor on December 12, 2009, and assumed office on January 2, 2010. Houston became the largest U.S. city ever to have an openly gay individual serve as mayor. After the election, Parker declared that the top priorities of her administration would be improving transportation, balancing the city's budget, and selecting a new police chief.

2011 election

In the 2011 election, Parker won a second term as Houston's mayor by defeating Fernando Herrera, Jack O'Connor, Dave Wilson, Kevin Simms, and Amanda Ulman without a runoff.

2013 election

In November 2013, Parker won a third term as Houston's mayor by winning 57.22% of the vote, making a runoff unnecessary.

Tenure

During her tenure as mayor, Parker addressed budget challenges following the recession while pursuing initiatives related to transportation and public services. by a vote of 11 to 6. Mayor Parker had certified that "there exists a public emergency requiring that this Ordinance be passed finally on the date of its introduction". The measure banned discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, pregnancy, genetic information, family, marital, and military status. It applied to housing, businesses that serve the public, private employers, city employment, and city contracting.

On July 3, 2014, opponents of HERO submitted 50,000 signatures to the city to force the ordinance to a vote of the public. The city announced that the opponents were 2,022 signatures short of the 17,269 needed to put the matter to a vote. HERO opponents filed a lawsuit against Mayor Parker and the city on August 5, 2014. of criticism over the subpoenas (Parker said that she had been "vilified coast to coast" After the subpoenas were withdrawn, local city pastors filed a civil rights lawsuit against Parker.

On November 3, 2015, Houston voters overturned HERO by a 61%-39% margin.

As mayor, Parker enacted an ordinance making it illegal to share food with the homeless in public spaces. Lawsuits continue over the ordinance, with a judge ruling in 2024 that local organization Food Not Bombs Houston could sue the city over it.

Due to term limits, Parker was not eligible to run for a fourth term in 2015.

Post-mayoral career After leaving the office of Mayor in 2016, Parker has worked for nonprofit organizations in Houston. She was Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer for community development nonprofit BakerRipley. From December 2017 to March 2025, Parker served as CEO and President of the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund and Leadership Institute. She is also a professor at the Doerr Institute for New Leaders at Rice University.

2026 Harris County Judge campaign

Media reports in May 2024 indicated that Parker was considering a 2026 candidacy for county judge. On June 11, 2025, Parker announced her run on the steps of the Harris County Civil Courthouse. Incumbent county judge Lina Hidalgo later announced she would not seek a third term. Parker finished ahead of former Houston city councilor Letitia Plummer in the Democratic primary, but narrowly lost to Plummer in the runoff.

Personal life Parker and her wife, Kathy Hubbard, have been together since 1990. They have two adopted children together. In addition, the couple provided a home to a teenaged boy; they consider him their son as well.

Awards and honors In June 2020, in honor of the 50th anniversary of the first LGBTQ Pride parade, Queerty named Parker among the fifty heroes "leading the nation toward equality, acceptance, and dignity for all people."

Electoral history

2003

2005

2007

2009

2011 Election box begin no party | title=Houston mayoral election, 2011