Out & Powerful
Annise Parker ranks ahead of RuPaul, trails Ellen on "Power 50" list of influential gay and lesbian leaders
She isn't quite at the level of Rachel Maddow or Ellen DeGeneres, but Annise Parker is in a select group. The Houston mayor has been named to Out Magazine's "Power 50" list of "gay men and women whose power and prestige is instrumental in influencing the way Americans think about, and engage with, the world."
Parker is No. 36 on the list, ahead of Glee actress Jane Lynch (No. 40), Sony music executive Clive Davis (No. 42), Gawker Media CEO Nick Denton (No. 39) and RuPaul (No. 50), but trails fashion designers Tom Ford (No. 31) and Marc Jacobs (No. 19), TV financial adviser Suze Orman (No. 28), and politicos Tammy Baldwin (No. 9) and Christine Quinn (No. 20).
Apple CEO Tim Cook is No. 1 on the list, followed by Degeneres, Glee creator Ryan Murphy and Maddow.
About Parker, the magazine says:
Just a few years ago, a lesbian mayor in the fourth largest city in the United States —especially in Texas —seemed impossible, but Parker has proved pessimists wrong with two successful terms in office and an undeniable left-of-center agenda. At the Democratic National Convention in September, she spoke about her commitment to progressive politics, stating, "This is a war that has already been won with young people. Full equality in this country is going to be in our lifetime."
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Photo by Leonid Furmansky