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Virginia ballot glitch chops names 21 minutes ago U.S. Senate candidate James H. "Jim" Webb has lost his last name on electronic ballots in three Virginia cities where election computers can't cope with long names. The glitch in Alexandria, Falls Church and Charlottesville also affects other candidates with long names, officials said. Webb, a Democrat, appears with his full name on the ballot page where voters make their choices. The error — referring to him only as James H. "Jim" — shows up on a summary page, where voters are supposed to review their selections. Election officials emphasized that the...

Feb. 18, 2005, 12:34AM Poll says Perry doing good job but vulnerable Though numbers are up, Hutchison still most popular of elected officialsBy R.G. RATCLIFFECopyright 2005 Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau AUSTIN - Gov. Rick Perry's job-approval rating has rebounded to its highest level in three years, according to a new poll, and he is well-positioned to face potential re-election challenges in next year's Republican primary from either U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison or Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn. The Scripps Howard Texas Poll found 51 percent of the Texans surveyed said Perry is doing a good job as governor while 33...

GOP's Perry banks $8 million for 2006 bid FORT WORTH, Texas, Jan. 14 (UPI) -- Texas Gov. Rick Perry already has a $7.9 million campaign war chest heading into his 2006 re-election bid, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram said Friday. He may need it. State Treasurer Carole Keeton Strayhorn, who is likely to challenge him in the GOP primary -- if Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, does not enter the race -- has raised $5.7 million of her own. "People in Texas are telling me to run for governor, and I am listening," Strayhorn said. A consistent Perry critic, Strayhorn turned...

Today's column is a primer on the language of Texas politics, a guide to understanding the words of two state Republican leaders who are millions of miles apart in their views — and billions of dollars apart in their math. I affectionately refer to Gov. Rick Perry and Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn, who are smiling before cameras, expressing concern for Texans and trying to club each other to political death at the same time. This, of course, is known as Running For Governor. When Strayhorn isn't boasting about her latest budget projections, she's holding a news conference to whack Perry...