WWE News: Hall Of Famer Booker T To Run For Mayor Of Houston In 2020


Will we one day be seeing WWE Hall of Famer Booker T as mayor of Houston, asking his constituents if they “can dig it”? Or will he become so successful in politics that he’ll be a five-term, or should we say, five-time mayor? It’s still way too early to tell, but it would appear that Booker T has his own political ambitions in mind for the future, potentially allowing him to join the likes of former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura as a pro wrestler-turned-politician.

In the world of professional wrestling, Booker T is no stranger to positions of storyline power and authority. As the winner of WWE’s 2006 King of the Ring tournament, he launched into one of his most memorable gimmicks in his time with the company. As King Booker, he affected a fake English accent and behaved like a literal king except when he was angry, upon which he would return to the promo style of his old street-smart Booker T character. With his ability to cut a convincing promo, Booker was able to pull off the role successfully, adding levity to what was otherwise a villainous persona.

He may have once been “King Booker,” but can Booker T make it as mayor of Houston? [Image by WWE]

Years later, soon after his retirement as an active wrestler, he had served as SmackDown’s General Manager from 2012 to 2013, and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2013. He then moved into color commentary, and currently serves as a pre-show host on Monday Night RAW and WWE pay-per-views.

With all that experience as a storyline “king” and on-air authority figure, it’s no surprise that Booker T now wants to run for mayor, having announced his plans on Saturday’s episode of Sports Radio610’s Heated Conversations. According to CBS Houston, Booker is hoping that these plans will come to fruition in the upcoming 2020 elections.

“You heard it, (in) 2020, I’m preparing. I’m preparing myself to run for mayor of the city.”

Booker also had another pro wrestler/politician with him on Heated Conversations – Terry Gerin, or Rhyno as he’s known to WWE fans. Rhyno, who presently wrestles in a tag team with Heath Slater on the SmackDown Live brand, had made an unsuccessful bid for the Michigan House of Representatives in the 2016 elections, and as he sees it, Booker T would make a great mayor, should he indeed run for office in 2020.

“You are overqualified for the job. Wrestling not only prepares you for life, but it prepares you for positions like that because you feel the emotion from the people you know what they want, you’ve built yourself from where you were to where you’re at now.”

As mentioned, Booker T and Rhyno’s political aspirations are nothing new for those who made their name in pro wrestling. In 1998, former WWE wrestler and color commentator Jesse “The Body” Ventura shocked America and the rest of the world when he won that year’s gubernatorial elections in Minnesota. And while Ventura and current President-elect Donald Trump could not be more different in terms of political ideologies, a report from PBS looked at the similarities in their campaigns, with both men relying heavily on their self-promotion skills. It also bears mentioning that both Ventura and Trump are in the WWE Hall of Fame, with Trump having been inducted for his work as a celebrity guest.

Is it really possible that another WWE Hall of Famer could make good use of his “promo skills,” as they call them in the business, and get elected to public office? The 2020 elections are still a good four years away from now, but with Booker T hoping to run for mayor of Houston, things have gotten quite interesting well in advance of the actual elections.

[Featured Image by Prince Williams/Getty Images]

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