Kathryn J. Whitmire
| Kathryn J. Whitmire | |
|---|---|
Undated official photo as Mayor of Houston
|
|
| 57th Mayor of Houston | |
|
In office 1982–1992 |
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| Preceded by | Jim McConn |
| Succeeded by | Bob Lanier |
| Houston City Controller | |
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In office 1978–1982 |
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| Preceded by | Leonel J. Castillo |
| Succeeded by | Lance Lalor |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
August 15, 1946 Houston, Texas, US |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) |
Jim Whitmire (m. 1970), his death in 1976; Alan J. Whelms (m. 2002) |
| Relations | John Whitmire (brother-in-law) |
| Residence | Hauʻula, Hawaii |
| Alma mater | University of Houston |
| Profession | Businesswoman, politician, accountant, professor |
Kathryn Jean "Kathy" Whitmire (née Niederhofer) (born August 15, 1946) is best known as the first female Mayor of the city of Houston, Texas, serving five consecutive two-year terms, from 1982 to 1991. She also served two terms as City Controller from 1977 to 1981, which made her the first female elected to any office in the city. A native of Houston, she was the daughter of Karl Niederhofer, a licensed electrician, and his wife Ida (née Reeves). After earning both Bachelor and master's degrees from the University of Houston, she married fellow student Jim Whitmire and began working for eight years with a major national accounting firm, during which time she became a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). In 1977, she was appointed to a two-year term as Houston City Controller. In 1979, she was elected to another term in the same office.
Whitmire drew national attention when she defeated former Sheriff Jack Heard in an election for Mayor of Houston. The election drew national attention because it symbolized a major political realignment in what was then the fourth-largest city in the United States.
In office, she implemented many reforms to city finances, enabling new programs without raising taxes. Her appointment of the city's first African American police chief and the first Hispanic woman as presiding judge of the Municipal Court, her support of a failed job rights bill for homosexuals, among other acts, cemented her support among many minority groups.
When former mayor Louie Welch attempted a comeback in the 1985 election, he was unable to mount a convincing argument that he could more ably lead the city out of a recession than Whitmire could. Instead, the opposition to Whitmire focused on public fears about the AIDS epidemic. Two city councilmen, Anthony Hall and Judson Robinson, allied themselves with the so-called "straight slate", which opposed gay rights and supported Welch. The issue failed to affect Whitmire's support. She won the election, getting 59.8 percent of the votes, while Hall and Robinson lost their seats. Her string of victories ended with the 1991 mayoral election when she was defeated by long-time political power broker Bob Lanier and State Representative Sylvester Turner. Lanier defeated Turner in the December runoff. She has never run for political office again.
Kathy Niederhofer received her basic education in the Houston Independent School District, ultimately graduating from San Jacinto High School. She then enrolled at the University of Houston, and graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in accounting in 1968. She continued her studies at the university to earn a Master of Accountancy degree in 1970. In that same year, she married a fellow student, James M. (Jim) Whitmire, who died in 1976. In 1970, she began working in the Houston office of the well-known accounting firm Coopers and Lybrand. She also began working to qualify as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), and opened an accounting firm with her husband. She also found time and energy to serve on the faculty of the Department of Business Management at the University of Houston–Downtown.
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