Kay Bailey Hutchison Leaving Senate to Run for Texas Governor

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison won't be a senator much longer. The Republican will soon be returning to her home state of Texas to launch a run for governor -- and she'll be quitting her Senate seat to do so. In an interview with Texas radio station WBAP, Hutchison promised to make her official campaign launch announcement in August. The senator also nixed any possibility that she would hold on to her seat while running for governor, saying that she would leave sometime in October or November.
But Hutchison's opponent, Republican Rick Perry, Texas' governor for the last nine years, hasn't seemed too concerned so far. The Dallas Morning News reports that at the beginning of this year, in response to rumors of her campaign, he responded: "There's plenty of time for the senator to think that it's not in her best interest," referring to the last gubernatorial campaign, when Hutchison initially announced a run against Perry, but then dropped her primary challenge.

"I stepped back last time," Hutchison told WBAP. "I tried to give him a free ride with no primary, but for him to try to stay on for 15 years is too long." The senator already seems to be setting the stage for her campaign. In her interview, she also promised to vote against Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor because of the judge's position on gun control and the Second Amendment. It's likely to be a popular topic on the campaign trail; Perry is also a strong opponent of gun control.

Texas must hold a special election before May to fill Hutchison's Senate seat. In the meantime, Perry can name an interim replacement after she steps down or declare an emergency special election early.