View source for List of mayors of Houston

{{Short description|None}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Infobox political post
| post = Mayor
| body = Houston
| insignia = Seal of Houston, Texas.png
| insigniacaption = Seal of the City of Houston 
| flag = File:Flag of Houston, Texas.svg
| flagcaption = Flag of the City of Houston 
| image = John Whitmire speaking at Veterans Day Ceremony, 2024 (5366) (cropped).jpg
| imagesize =
| caption = 
| incumbent = [[John Whitmire]]
| incumbentsince = January 1, 2024
| style = The Honorable
| salary = $236,189 (2019)
| termlength = Four years, renewable once (effective 2016)
| formation = Houston City Charter
| inaugural = [[James Sanders Holman|James S. Holman]]<br/>1837
| website = {{Official website|http://www.houstontx.gov/mayor/index.html}}
}}
{{ElectionsTX}}

The following is a list of people who have served as [[mayor]] of the city of [[Houston]] in the [[U.S. state]] of [[Texas]].

==Qualifications, election, and terms ==

To file to run for mayor, a person must be a qualified voter of the city of Houston, and have has resided in the city for at least 12 months immediately preceding the election day; to serve, the person must continue to be a qualified voter and resident.<ref name=Municode/> Elections for mayor are held every other odd-numbered year.  To serve as mayor of Houston, a person must be a qualified voter and resident of the City.<ref name=Municode/> To win the election, a candidate is required to receive the majority of votes; if no candidate receives a majority, a run-off election between the top two <ref name=KERA/>

Until 2015, the term of the mayor was two years.<ref name=Municode/> Beginning with the tenure of [[Bob Lanier (politician)|Bob Lanier]], the city charter imposed [[term limits]] on officeholders of no more than three terms (six years total).<ref name=Municode/> On November 3, 2015, voters approved Proposition 2, which extended the terms of the Mayor, City Controller and City Councilmembers to four years, while imposing a limit of two terms.

==List of mayors of Houston==
<!-- Please rearrange table so current officeholder is at the bottom. -->
{| class="wikitable sortable"" style="text-align:center;"
! {{abbr|No.|Number}} !! Term !! Mayor
!
! Party affiliation
|-
| 63
| 2024–present
| [[John Whitmire]]
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 62
| 2016–2024
| [[Sylvester Turner]]
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic 
|-
| 61
| 2010–2016
| [[Annise Parker]]
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 60
| 2004–2010
| [[Bill White (Texas politician)|Bill White]] 
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 59
| 1998–2004
| [[Lee P. Brown|Lee Brown]]
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 58
| 1992–1998
| [[Bob Lanier (politician)|Bob Lanier]] 
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 57
| 1982–1992
| [[Kathy Whitmire]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.womenintexashistory.org/timeline/ |title=Timeline |work=Women in Texas History |publisher=Ruthe Winegarten Memorial Foundation for Texas Women's History |location=Austin |access-date=April 14, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170323170755/http://www.womenintexashistory.org/timeline |archive-date=March 23, 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 56
| 1978–1982
| [[Jim McConn]] 
| style="background:{{party color|Republican Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Republican
|-
| 55
| 1974–1978
| [[Fred Hofheinz]] 
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 54
| 1964–1974
| [[Louie Welch]] 
| style="background:{{party color|Republican Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Republican
|-
| 53
| 1958–1964
| [[Lewis Wesley Cutrer|Lewis Cutrer]] 
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 52
| 1956–1958
| [[Oscar F. Holcombe]] (5th)
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 51
| 1953–1956
| [[Roy Hofheinz]]
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 50
| 1947–1953
| [[Oscar F. Holcombe]] (4th)
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 49
| 1943–1947
| [[Otis Massey]]
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 48
| 1941–1943
| [[Cornelius A. Pickett|Neal Pickett]]
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 47
| 1939–1941
| [[Oscar F. Holcombe]] (3rd)
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 46
| 1937–1939
| [[Richard H. Fonville]]
|
|
|-
| 45
| 1933–1937
| [[Oscar F. Holcombe]] (2nd)
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 44
| 1929–1933
| [[Walter E. Monteith]]
|
|
|-
| 43
| 1921–1929
| [[Oscar F. Holcombe]]
| style="background:{{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}};"|&nbsp;
| Democratic
|-
| 42
| 1918–1921
| [[Almeron Earl Amerman, Sr.|A. Earl Amerman]]
|
|
|-
| 41
| 1917–1918
| [[Joseph Chappell Hutcheson Jr.]]
|
|
|-
| 40
| 1917
| [[Joseph Jay Pastoriza|J. J. Pastoriza]] (died in office)
|
|
|-
| 39
| 1913–1917
| [[Ben Campbell (Houston mayor)|Ben Campbell]]
|
|
|-
| 38
| 1905–1913
| [[Horace Baldwin Rice|H. Baldwin Rice]] (2nd)
|
|
|-
| 37
| 1904–1905
| [[Andrew L. Jackson]]
|
|
|-
| 36
| 1902–1904
| [[Orren T. Holt|O. T. Holt]]
|
|
|-
| 35
| 1901–1902
| [[John D. Woolford]]
|
|
|-
| 34
| 1898–1901
| [[Samuel H. Brashear]]
|
|
|-
| 33
| 1896–1898
| [[Horace Baldwin Rice]]
|
|
|-
| 32
| 1892–1896
| [[John T. Browne]]
|
|
|-
| 31
| 1890–1892
| [[Henry Scherffius]]
|
|
|-
| 30
| 1886–1890
| [[Daniel C. Smith]]
|
|
|-
| 29
| 1880–1886
| [[William R. Baker]]
|
|
|-
| 28
| 1879–1880
| [[Andrew Jackson Burke]]
|
|
|-
| 27
| 1877–1878
| [[James T. D. Wilson]] (2nd)
|
|
|-
| 26
| 1875–1876
| [[Irving Capers Lord|I. C. Lord]]
|
|
|-
| 25
| 1874
| [[James T. D. Wilson]]
|
|
|-
| 24
| 1870–1873
| [[Thomas Howe Scanlan|Thomas H. Scanlan]]
|
|
|-
| 23
| 1868–1870
| [[Joseph Robert Morris]]
|
|
|-
| 22
| 1867–1868
| [[Alexander McGowan]] (2nd)
|
|
|-
| 21
| 1866
| [[Horace D. Taylor]]
|
|
|-
| 20
| 1863–1865
| [[William Anders (mayor)|William Anders]]
|
|
|-
| 19
| 1862
| [[Thomas William House Sr.|Thomas W. House]]
|
|
|-
| 18
| 1861
| [[William J. Hutchins]]
|
|
|-
| 17
| 1860
| [[Thomas W. Whitmarsh]]
|
|
|-
| 16
| 1859
| [[William Harrison King|William King]]
|
|
|-
| 15
| 1858
| [[Alexander McGowan]]
|
|
|-
| 14
| 1856–1857
| [[Cornelius Ennis]]
|
|
|-
| 13
| 1855–1856
| [[James H. Stevens]]
|
|
|-
| 12
| 1853–1854
| [[Nathan Fuller]]
|
|
|-
| 11
| 1849–1852
| [[Francis W. Moore Jr.]] (3rd)
|
|
|-
| 10
| 1847–1848
| [[Benjamin P. Buckner]]
|
|
|-
| 9
| 1846
| [[James Bailey (American politician)|James Bailey]]
|
|
|-
| 8
| 1845
| [[William Swain (politician)|William Swain]]
|
|
|-
| 7
| 1844
| [[Horace Baldwin]]
|
|
|-
| 6
| 1843
| [[Francis W. Moore Jr.]] (2nd)
|
|
|-
| 5
| 1841–1842
| [[John Day Andrews]]
|
|
|-
| 4
| 1840
| [[Charles Bigelow (politician)|Charles Bigelow]]
|
|
|-
|3
| 1839
| [[George W. Lively]]
|
|
|-
|2
| 1838–1839
| [[Francis W. Moore Jr.]]
|
|
|-
| 1
| 1837
| [[James Sanders Holman|James S. Holman]]
|
|
|}

==See also==
{{Portal|Texas}}
* [[Timeline of Houston]]

==References==
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name=Municode>{{cite web|accessdate=February 25, 2025
|url=https://library.municode.com/tx/houston/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=CH_ARTVOFEL_S4QUELOF
|title=ARTICLE V. - OFFICERS AND ELECTION
|work=CODE OF ORDINANCES CITY OF HOUSTON, TEXAS
|publisher=Municode}}
</ref>
<ref name=KERA>{{cite news|accessdate=February 25, 2025
|url=https://www.keranews.org/texas-news/2024-02-27/how-many-primary-races-will-require-overtime-heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-runoffs-in-texas
|title=What triggers a runoff election in Texas? Here's what you need to know |date=February 27, 2024
|first=Julián |last=Aguilar |publisher=KERA News}}
</ref>
}}

==External links==
*{{cite web|url=http://www.houstontx.gov/mayor/bio.html |title=Mayor of Houston Biography|publisher=Mayor's Office, City of Houston}}
*{{cite web|url=http://www.houstontx.gov/mayor/history.html |title=Mayoral History - List of Houston Mayors
|publisher=Mayor's Office, City of Houston}}
*{{cite web|url=http://www.rulers.org/uscit.html#houston|title=Rulers: U.S. Cities- Houston| publisher=rulers.org}}

{{Houston, Texas}}

[[Category:Lists of mayors of places in Texas|Houston, Texas]]
[[Category:Mayors of Houston|*]]
[[Category:Houston-related lists|Mayors]]