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Democratic state Sen. John Whitmire was elected as Houston’s next mayor on Saturday, defeating Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) in a runoff, the Associated Press projected.
Whitmire has stood as a staple of Houston politics, serving as an elected official in the state for over five decades. Jackson Lee, the city’s long-term congresswoman, had faced an uphill battle in spending and the fallout over her alleged beratement of staffers.
In October, audio leaked of Jackson Lee appearing to call a staffer “fuckface,” “shitass,” and “Boo Boo.” The congresswoman later apologized for the incident.