| State Sen. Florence Shapiro (R-Plano) announced she is forming a U.S. Senate exploratory committee this morning. Shapiro, the chair of the Senate Education Committee, will seek the seat of Kay Bailey Hutchison, who, the press release says, "has already announced she will either leave the U.S. Senate at the end of her current term (which runs through 2012) or sooner." This is a big step for Shapiro and it seems like she wouldn't have taken it unless she was pretty certain that Hutchison would be running for Governor in 2010. Shapiro says she will begin traveling the state to meet with voters soon. This very early announcement seems to acknowledge the fact that a relatively unknown state senator like Shapiro will have a tough time in this race, especially if it shapes up to be a short-time window special election in which a well-financed candidate like David Dewhurst (or John Sharp?) could have a significant advantage. Shapiro's list of supporters, however, is fairly impressive. It includes 15 of the 19 13 of the 18 Republican senators. You can read more about the story and view Shapiro's press release at Quorum Report. What about on the Democratic side? Who do you want to run for this seat? |
