Annise Parker hugs supporter: Photo by Smiley Pool - Chronicle
In what started out as a horse race, but ever slowly and steadily during the night, and as this writer called at 9:30 PM (CT) in a temporary election coverage posting, Houston City Controller, Annise Parker pulled out a win over her opponent Gene Locke, a former city hall attorney.
Parker becomes the first “out” mayor elected to the city hall of a major metropolitan city in the United States. Parker who never ran on the “gay card” instead ran a clean campaign based on her experience and what she hopes to do for the city and its citizens as mayor of Houston.
With 100% of the votes tallied at the time of this writing, Parker won 52.8% to 47.2% over Locke. Just after 10 PM (CT) Locke stood before his loyal supporters, thanked them, and gave his concession speech in which he called on all citizens of Houston for unity and to support the new mayor of Houston, the 50th mayor of that city.
Parker has been winning elections for 12 years, so while many across the United States have made an issue of Parker being “out”, it seems not to have been a problem up to and including this past November general election, which because of a close vote count, caused Saturday’s runoff election.
Ray Hill, often called the “old man of gay activism” in Houston said Parker’s victory, “is not just a win for “our community”, but a win for all who live in the city of Houston” while he was doing an in-studio interview during KHOU-TV’s election coverage and it looked like Parker may pull off a win and defeat Locke.
In her victory speech, Parker thanked Locke for his campaign and wished him and his family well. To the citizens of Houston she said, “Thank you, thank you, thank you.” She also introduced to the supporters gathered, her longtime companion and their three children.
While during her campaign she toned down the fact she is an open lesbian, one KHOU-TV anchor remarked after her victory speech “tonight Annise Parker embraced her lesbianism and being part of the LGBT community”.
As a reporter for KHOU-TV said during the TV station’s 10 PM newscast and aptly put it in regards to Parker being a lesbian and the way the national mainstream press and LGBT press/bloggers have put the spotlight on that fact, “people in Houston really don’t care, they want the potholes fixed”.
Perhaps finally, at least in Houston anyway, it doesn’t matter what you are, but who you are.
VIDEO FROM FOX-TV CHANNEL 26 HOUSTON
