ABSTRACT
The major cities of Texas are mostly blue and have elected a rainbow’s array of diverse mayors. Henry Cisneros was the first Hispanic mayor of San Antonia to be elected in the modern era. Cisneros was first elected mayor in 1981 and served four two-year terms. Houston elected Kathy Whitmire to five two-year terms from 1982 to 1992. She appointed Lee P. Brown to be Houston’s first black police chief and Brown served as the city’s first black major from 1998 to 2004. Dallas elected Annette Strauss its first female mayor in 1987 (Adlene Harrison served as acting major in 1976) and Ron Kirk its first black mayor in 1995. The difference between urban politics in Texas and statewide politics was on stark display when Ron Kirk, an easy winner in his mayoral races, sought the U.S. Senate in 2002. He lost by twelve points.
