Loretta Purdy Spencer (born June 20, 1937) is an American politician who served as the 66th mayor of Huntsville, Alabama. Her first term began October 4, 1996, and her last term ended on November 3, 2008. Early life Spencer has been a resident of Huntsville since age 7. She graduated from Huntsville High School, and holds a bachelor of science degree from the University of Alabama. Spencer was the first woman mayor of Huntsville, and the first woman mayor of one of Alabama's "four main cities," which also include Birmingham, Mobile and Montgomery. When Spencer was first elected mayor in 1996, she was the co-owner of a local funeral home. Spencer is a former teacher in the Huntsville City School System. Spencer, who is divorced, has two children and four grandchildren. Mayoral career Spencer first ran for mayor in 1996, after then-mayor Steve Hettinger announced he would not seek another term. Spencer was supported by Hettinger, leading her runoff opponent, Larry Mullins, to attack both as agents of the status quo. Facing a field of ten opponents, Spencer made the runoff, which she won by a convincing 66%–34% majority. During her first term, Spencer garnered editorial praise for rejuvenating Huntsville's economic development. The Huntsville Times stated that her "string of recent successes is a whiff of the famous optimism and spirit that characterized the city for decades." At the end of her first term, Spencer was re-elected without a runoff, taking 58% of the vote. In 2004, Spencer won a third term. During the 2004 campaign, Spencer came under attack on several issues. First, she was criticized for the state of Huntsville schools. She was also criticized for allegedly favoring the wealthier southern areas of Huntsville over the northern neighborhoods with larger minority populations. This criticism may have been reflected in voting results, in which Spencer failed to carry precincts in north Huntsville. Although forced into a runoff, she won that runoff with 55% of the vote. In January 2007, Spencer was awarded the Distinguished Service Award by the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce. Later that year Spencer was embroiled in controversy when the fire chief she had appointed resigned after only 18 months on the job. It emerged that he resigned after Spencer confronted him over alleged sexual harassment for his conduct toward a city employee, for which the city was later sued. In 2008, this suit was settled,