John Harris Whitmire (born August 13, 1949) is an American attorney and politician who has served as the 63rd mayor of Houston, Texas, since 2024. Whitmire was previously a Democratic member of the Texas House of Representatives from 1973 until 1983, and the Texas State Senate from 1983 to 2023. In the state senate, he represented District 15, which included much of northern Houston.
In November 2021, Whitmire announced his candidacy for mayor of Houston in the 2023 election. In November 2023, he advanced to a runoff with Representative Sheila Jackson Lee. He won the runoff by a wide margin on December 9, 2023.
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Early life and education
Whitmire was born in Hillsboro, Texas, north of Waco, to James Madison Whitmire, the Hill County clerk, and the former Ruth Marie Harris, a nurse. His parents divorced when he was seven years old, and the family moved several times, facing difficult financial circumstances.
In his early teenage years, he moved to North Houston and attended Waltrip High School. Whitmire attended college at the University of Houston to study political science while paying for his education by working for the Texas State Welfare Department, where he interviewed food stamp recipients for compliance.
Texas House of Representatives (1973–1983)
Under pressure from the Federal courts, the 1971 legislature drew up Texas's first single-member district plan for the House of Representatives. Whitmire's political science professor Richard Murray was the one to inspire him to run for office as he illustrated the newly drawn district lines that encompassed Whitmire's neighborhood. Whitmire won the primary following a runoff election and easily defeated his Republican opponent. His father provided him with a $5,000 loan for his campaign funds.
Whitmire served in the Texas House with colleagues Gene Green, Craig Washington, and Mickey Leland and eventually finished his undergraduate degree. In his early years, he was not seen as a particularly influential legislator, and he was criticized by Texas Monthly magazine for his low impact. He began his law studies at the Bates College of Law (now the University of Houston Law Center), then passed the bar in 1981 while still serving in the House. He did not graduate, as state law at the time allowed legislators entrance to the bar without a full J.D.
Texas Senate (1983–2023)
In 1982, Senator Jack Ogg vacated his seat to pursue the Attorney General position. Whitmire captured the Senate District 15 seat, taking office in 1983.
Whitmire won reelection to the state Senate in the general election held on November 6, 2018. With 152,728 votes (65.2 percent), he defeated the Republican candidate, Randy Orr, who polled 75,423 (32.2 percent). Another 6,266 votes (2.7 percent) went to the Libertarian choice, Gilberto "Gil" Velasquez Jr. He resigned effectively from the State Senate on December 31, 2023, after his election as Mayor of Houston.
Whitmire served as the acting governor of Texas for a single day in 1993 as part of the "Governor for a Day" tradition.
Criminal justice
In 1993, Whitmire was appointed by Lieutenant Governor Bob Bullock as Chair of the Senate Criminal Justice Committee, where he oversaw reforms to the penal code and increased construction of prisons, to a generally favorable reception. Whitmire remained the chair as of the eighty-seventh Texas Legislature.
Whitmire passed legislation to free the Texans who were imprisoned as a result of the Tulia drug raid. That incident resulted in the conviction of 38 Texans based on the testimony of one individual who has since been indicted and arrested for perjury. The legislation allowed the judge to release the prisoners on bond pending the decision of the Court of Criminal Appeals. On June 10, 2003, the Tulia defendants were freed on bond as provided for in Whitmire's legislation. They were later pardoned by the Governor.
Whitmire was angered by convicted murderer Lawrence Russell Brewer's refusal to eat the expensive last meal he ordered prior to his September 21, 2011, execution. Whitmire said that this was Brewer's attempt to "make a mockery out of the process." The senator contacted the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and asked the agency to end the practice of last meal requests or he would get the State Legislature to pass a bill doing so. The agency replied that last meal requests were accommodated "within reason" from food available in the prison kitchen, but it agreed to end the practice immediately at Whitmire's insistence.
Redistricting
In 2003, Whitmire was one of the "Texas Eleven", a group of Democrats who fled the state for New Mexico in a quorum-busting effort aimed at preventing the passage of redistricting legislation that would have benefited Texas Republicans. He ultimately returned to the legislature, creating a quorum and undoing the efforts of the rest of the Texas Eleven. Whitmire was strongly criticized by Democrats and praised by some Republicans, who were able to redraw the maps.
Mayor of Houston (2024–present)
2023 election
In November 2021, Whitmire announced his candidacy in the 2023 Houston mayoral election to succeed term-limited Mayor Sylvester Turner. He first considered a mayoral bid in the 1990s and was encouraged by Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo to run in the 2023 race. Though being a crowded field, The New York Times described the race as a de facto two-person contest between Whitmire and U.S. Representative Sheila Jackson Lee. Both were Democrats and long-time fixtures in Houston politics. His campaign focused on public safety with a pledge to bring 200 troopers from the Texas Department of Public Safety to assist the Houston Police Department. With a moderate message, Whitmire positioned himself to appeal to centrist and Republican voters, while Jackson Lee was considered the more progressive candidate.
Whitmire held a fundraising advantage over Jackson Lee, raising over twice as much as she did between July and late September 2023; he outspent her five-to-one in the same time period. In the general election, Whitmire received about 43% of the vote, with Jackson Lee receiving 36%. With both candidates below the 50% plus one threshold, a runoff was held between Whitmire and Jackson Lee on December 9, 2023. He was projected to be the winner following a commanding early lead.
Tenure
Whitmire took office as mayor on January 1, 2024. Sworn in at the age of 74, he became the oldest mayor of Houston in over a century.
Early on in his mayorship, Whitmire ordered personnel changes for the city, including new appointments of several department heads, such as the finance department, planning department, neighborhoods department, airport system, and Metro and transportation planning authority. In his first 100 days in office, Whitmire appointed seven department heads, which is about a one-third turnover in the city's leadership.
As of June 3, 2024, about 12 department heads and senior officials had resigned or left Whitmire's administration.
Since 2016, the Houston Police Department has suspended 264,000 criminal cases using the justification of "lack of personnel." In March 2024, Whitmire introduced a five-person committee to investigate the case suspensions. The situation has been considered a scandal and resulted in the abrupt May 2024 resignation of Interim Police Chief Troy Finner, whom Whitmire temporarily replaced with Larry Satterwhite. There is now a group of 100 investigators assigned to review the suspended reports. On June 11, 2024, Whitmire said the report of the committee he delegated to investigate the matter would be released the next week. The report was released on July 31, 2024, a week after the former police chief raised concerns of a cover-up. A year later, the city was unable to offer progress updates on addressing the problems leading to the scandal.
Whitmire has proposed a $1.5 billion deal to end the eight-year-old stalemate between the city and the fire fighter's union. The deal includes $650 million in backpay and a 10% raise in 2024, with the possibility of another 6% increase over the proceeding four years.
Upon entering office, Whitmire inherited a $160 million budget shortfall. Whitmire has said he has intentions to propose an increase in the property tax cap, which would need voter approval. But would not do so until waste, fraud and abuse were removed from the City's budget. An efficiency study was commissioned and was completed by the accounting firm Ernst & Young for FY2025. The recommendations made by Ernst & Young were implemented in the budget passed by the City Council with a vote of 14-3. Increasing the cap would mean a $15 increase in property taxes per month (or $180 a year) for the average tax payer. Whitmire proposed a $6.7 billion budget for the 2025 fiscal year, a 7% increase from the year before. Despite speculation, the proposal did not have an increase in property taxes or fees; instead, remaining federal funds for the COVID-19 pandemic will be used to close the deficit. About $1.7 billion of the budget goes to public safety efforts, with the Houston Police Department taking roughly 15% of the budget, a 3.6% increase from the prior year. The proposal would include 200 more police officers and about 100 more full-time employees for the fire department.
Personal life
Whitmire was previously married to Rebecca "Becki" Dalby.
Whitmire's brother, James M. Whitmire, was married from 1970 until his death in 1976 to Kathy Niederhofer, who was mayor of Houston from 1982 to 1992.