Let us not forget that when Perry was a democrat he took upon himself the democrat platform. Just saying.
Rick Perry grew up in conservatism. He was small town boy who attended TX A&M and was in the Corps of Cadets. He went on to fly C-130s for the U.S. Air Force (5 years). In 1984 at the age of 33, Perry ran for office as a Democrat (most Texans were raised as conservative Democrats). Five years later as the party kept moving Left, led by their national leadership, Perry joined (along with others) the burgeoning Republican Party, as it was the ideological home of the same conservatism Rick Perry had been raised with.
The “was a Democrat” won’t fly anymore, since Cain voted for Clinton in 1992, and his wife still votes Democrat.