Eye on Austin: Governor's race will eclipse current news

Enrique Rangel

The special session Gov. Rick Perry intends to call, his signing of bills the just-concluded Legislature passed and his bike accident have dominated the news from Austin recently.

But get ready for another long political season because once the special session is over the governor's race is expected to dominate the news.

Imagine, eight months of politicking (the next primary is in March of 2010). That's the price Texas voters will pay for two political heavyweights who want to live in the governor's mansion.

As most voters know, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison intends to challenge Perry in the Republican primary. The race is expected to get lots of national attention because of the senator's political stature and because the contest is viewed as a fight for the heart and soul of the Republican Party in Texas, Perry wooing the conservative base while Hutchison seeks to broaden the party's appeal to moderates and independents.

However, although the battle between Perry and Hutchison is shaping up as the main attraction, there are at least three other candidates in the race. They are:

• State Rep. Leo Berman, R-Tyler, who has served in the Legislature for 10 years and also served in the Arlington City Council for six.

• Tom Schieffer, a lifelong Democrat best known for being a business partner and supporter of former President George W. Bush and brother of CBS newsman Bob Schieffer.

• Humorist Kinky Friedman, who ran as an independent in 2006 but plans to run as a Democrat next year.

But it should be noted that even though Berman declared his candidacy last year we won't know until early next month whether he is in the race for the long stretch. Berman, best known for his tough stand on illegal immigration, said this week that if Perry endorses four key issues he is pushing for - including two that would help the state crackdown on illegal immigrants - he will withdraw from the race on July 1 and endorse the governor.

Berman's decision could have a huge impact on the race because a recent poll showed Perry and Hutchison running neck and neck. In a three-way race in the Republican primary, Berman could take more votes from the governor than from the senator.

Berman said he would support Hutchison.

"She is not conservative," he said. "Rick Perry is."

Another overlooked factor is the impact the governor's race may have on other races, mainly for lieutenant governor and attorney general.

Once the special session is over, everyone will be waiting to see what Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst decides to do. If Hutchison resigns her seat to run for governor, Dewhurst is expected to run for her seat and compete with state Sen. Florence Shapiro, R-Plano for the Republican nomination and possibly against former Democratic State Comptroller John Sharp or Houston Mayor Bill White in the general election.

Were Dewhurst to step down as lieutenant governor, that would leave the door open for Attorney General Greg Abbott to run for the post. And with Abbott out of the attorney general's office expect a crowded field in that race, with former solicitor general Ted Cruz and state Rep. Dan Branch of Dallas fighting it out in the Republican primary and state Sen. Royce West of Dallas running as a Democrat.

Globe-News Austin Bureau Chief Enrique Rangel can be reached at enrique.rangel@morris.com or by mail at P.O. Box 12457, Austin, TX 78711-2457. His column appears weekly.