A group opposing the candidacy of Annise Parker for Houston mayor is planning a campaign to urge voters to defeat her because she’s an out lesbian, the Houston Chronicle reported tonight:

“The bottom line is that we didn’t pick the battle, she did, when she made her agenda and sexual preference a central part of her campaign,” said Dave Welch, executive director of the Houston Area Pastor Council, numbering more than 200 senior pastors in the Greater Houston area. “National gay and lesbian activists see this as a historic opportunity. The reality is that’s because they’re promoting an agenda which we believe to be contrary to the concerns of the community and destructive to the family.”

Parker, who was the top vote-getter in the general election November 3rd, faces a runoff election against her sole opponent, Gene Locke, a former city attorney.  According to the Houston Chronicle:

Parker’s opponent, former City Attorney Gene Locke, strongly distanced himself from a previous anti-gay attack against her that ultimately proved to have been a hoax. But he has made recent efforts to court some of the staunch social conservatives who are either actively planning on attacking Parker’s sexuality or strongly considering it.

He appeared at the Pastor Council’s annual gala last Friday and was encouraged several times by State Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, a featured speaker, to stand for conservative values.

Locke has also met with and sought the endorsement of Dr. Steven Hotze, a longtime local kingmaker in conservative politics and author of the Straight Slate in 1985, a coterie of eight City Council candidates he recruited who ran on an anti-gay platform.

For more information about how you can get involved in Annise Parker’s campaign, visit www.victoryfund.org/anniseparker.

Photo:  Houston Chronicle