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Pride Houston Grand Marshal Election 2026

NOMINATE
elect a leader

Grand Marshal - Noms end January 9, 2026

Each year, Pride Houston 365 honors individuals who have made significant contributions to the LGBTQIA+ community in Houston and beyond. The Grand Marshals represent the heart of our movement, leaders, advocates, and change-makers who embody the spirit of Pride through their service, authenticity, and courage.

Eligibility:
Applicants must be:

  • At least 21 years of age

  • Residents of Greater Houston or who have strong ties to Houston’s LGBTQIA+ community

  • Demonstrating outstanding community involvement, leadership, and advocacy

Vote for one nominee in each category (you’re encouraged, but not required, to vote in all).

Not in the voting radius? You can still back your favorite by donating to our Pride Scholarship Fund in their name.

Who can vote (100-mile radius of downtown Houston): Harris, Fort Bend, Brazoria, Austin, Waller, Galveston, Chambers, Liberty, Montgomery, San Jacinto, Brazos, Walker, Grimes, Washington.

Grand Marshal Nomination

Nominate an infividual based on their outstanding accomplishments and contributions to the Houston LGBTQIA+ Community.

Nominate

FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

The Board of Directors reserves the right to select other Grand Marshal categories for special occasions (i.e., Celebrity, Honorary, etc.).

Nominees should be selected based on their outstanding accomplishments and contributions to the Houston LGBTQIA+ Community. Areas of contribution to be considered are social, political, health, youth welfare, education and business. Types of contributions to be considered are volunteering, generosity, leadership roles and civic pride.

Grand Marshals should be seen as role models to the community as a whole, not just be popular members of the community. This should be shown in the accomplishments and contributions they have made to the community.

  • Male Identifying Grand Marshal
  • Female Identifying Grand Marshal
  • Gender Non-Binary/ Gender Non-Conforming Grand Marshal
  • Ally Grand Marshal
  • LGBTQ+ Focused Community Organization

Male Identifying Grand Marshal nominees need to have their main residence in the Greater Houston area and should self-identify as a GBTQIA+ male or male-presenting person who has demonstrated outstanding accomplishments/contributions to the Houston LGBTQIA+ Community for more than four (4) years. No pairs or groups allowed as nominees.

Female Identifying Grand Marshal nominees need to have their main residence in the Greater Houston area and should self-identify as an LBTQIA+ female or female-presenting person who has demonstrated outstanding accomplishments/contributions to the Houston LGBTQIA+ Community for more than four (4) years. No pairs or groups allowed as nominees.

Gender Non-Binary Grand Marshal nominees need to have their main residence in the Greater Houston area and should self-identify as a gender non-binary presenting person who has demonstrated outstanding accomplishments/contributions to the Houston LGBTQIA+ Community for more than four (4) years. No pairs or groups allowed as nominees.

Ally Grand Marshal nominees need to have their main residence in the Greater Houston area and should self-identify as a heterosexual, cisgender man or woman who has demonstrated outstanding accomplishments/contributions to the Houston LGBTQIA+ Community for more than four (4) years. A pair or couple may be nominated. No groups allowed as nominees.

LGBTQ+ Focused Community Organization nominees need to serve primarily the Greater Houston area with programming that benefits the LGBTQ+ community.  The organization should have outstanding accomplishments/contributions that have had a great impact on the LGBTQIA+ Community in Houston and their body of work should span four (4) years or more.

Although everyone loves surprises, this unfortunately cannot be one of those situations. All individuals must be notified of their nomination in advance by the person(s) nominating them and then given the right to deny or accept the nomination.
Yes! However, a person cannot be recognized for the same contributions as before. Therefore, if the individual(s) contributed in a different capacity and have continued to go above and beyond in the advancement of LGBTQIA+ rights since being a Grand Marshal, then their nomination will be accepted.
Nominations will be reviewed by a committee consisting of former Grand Marshals and Pride Board members for eligibility. All final chosen candidates will be announced at a later date to be determined.
The nominees will be presented to the community for a vote, the winners of which will be announced during Pride kickoff. A full listing of expectations will be presented to the nominees before Pride kickoff, but include event appearances, media appearances, participation in the Houston LGBT Pride Parade, etc. All Grand Marshal nominees and Grand Marshals should positively represent Pride Houston, Inc. in all public activities.