The position of Gov. Rick Perry in the three-way Texas gubernatorial primary race isn’t perfect, but it is full of promise. Meanwhile, the prospects of Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison have gone from bad to worse. Far from catching Perry, she is now in danger of falling into third place behind Tea Party activist Debra Medina.
According to political blog TPMDC, the latest poll puts Perry at 39%, followed by Hutchison at 28% and Medina at 24%. The difference between Hutchison and Medina is within the margin of error.
Hutchison is seen as the most moderate of the three, and among Texas Republicans who so describe themselves, she has a solid 49%-29% lead over Perry, with Medina way back at 14%. Unfortunately, the moderates make up only 20% of the Texas party faithful.
If Perry fails to win with support from 50% or more voters, the top two candidates would go into a run-off. Hutchison is now said by TPMDC to be in danger of losing 2nd place to Medina.
Perry, meanwhile, looks solid no matter who his opponent turns out to be in a run-off. TPMDC guesses that if Medina gets 2nd place, Hutchison’s moderate supporters would turn to him over the tea party activist, and if Hutchison hangs on to second, Medina’s conservative supporters would be a lock to go with Perry.
Hutchison is Ranking Member of the Senate Commerce Committee.
