AUSTIN — The theatrics of the 81st Texas Legislature may be over, but Texans are now gearing up for the state’s next feature attraction — a roiling political season topped by a marquee race for governor.

The unfolding Republican primary race between Gov. Rick Perry and his challenger, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, is expected to become the costliest — if not the most vitriolic — primary battle in state history.

Hutchison’s campaign team is accusing the governor of a lack of leadership and being "AWOL" during the just-ended legislative session, allowing major issues to go unresolved. In turn, the Perry team depicts Hutchison as an ineffective senator with little to show for her 16 years in Washington. And that’s before either candidate has formally entered the race.

Democrats, who haven’t held a statewide office since 1994, are also hoping that their party’s improving fortunes at the national level could boost their chance to recapture the governor’s office as well as other posts. Former U.S. Ambassador Tom Schieffer of Fort Worth and author-entertainer-humorist Kinky Friedman of Austin, who ran as an independent in the 2006 race, are both seeking the party’s nomination to run against the winner of the Perry-Hutchison race.

From the top of the ticket on down, the state’s political picture will come into sharper focus throughout the summer and early fall as candidates end exploratory efforts and officially join the race — or possibly back away.

Down-ballot races

Scores of races are already unfolding at the state, regional and local levels, re-energizing a multimillion-dollar industry for campaign consultants, media and mass-mailing experts and other full-time political pros.

State House races will become increasingly important next year as Republicans, led by House Speaker Joe Straus of San Antonio, battle to maintain and expand their precarious majority, now 76-74, and Democrats seek to gain control for the first time in eight years.

Another high-profile contest is the battle for Hutchison’s U.S. Senate seat, which is shaping up to get a heavy infusion of North Texas candidates. Republicans who are either in the race or exploring a run include former Texas Secretary of State Roger Williams of Weatherford, Railroad Commissioner Michael Williams of Arlington and state Sen. Florence Shapiro of Plano, as well as Railroad Commissioner Elizabeth Ames Jones of San Antonio.

Former Houston Mayor Bill White and former state Comptroller John Sharp are running for the Senate as Democrats.

Other statewide offices will also be on the ballot in 2010, raising the potential for musical chairs if an incumbent seeks a career change. Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, presiding officer of the Texas Senate, has been mentioned as a possible appointee for Hutchison’s Senate seat if she chooses to resign while campaigning for governor. Attorney Gen. Greg Abbott has been touted as a likely candidate for lieutenant governor.

The governor’s race will intensify in the coming weeks as the contenders formally declare their candidacies.

Perry, who was prevented from raising money or campaigning while the Legislature was in session, plans to announce his candidacy "sometime after" the period for vetoing bills ends June 21, said Mark Miner, his communications director.

The other gubernatorial contenders have formed exploratory committees, but there has been little doubt that they plan to follow through with full-fledged campaigns. Hutchison is expected to announce her entry into the race by late summer or early fall. Schieffer plans to announce later this month, said his press spokesman Clay Robison. Friedman says he will declare his candidacy "pretty soon."

Third GOP candidate

In early July, a third GOP gubernatorial candidate, state Rep. Leo Berman, R-Tyler, a former Arlington city council member, plans to announce his entry in the race.

Berman, a staunch conservative, says his campaign will focus on trademark issues: illegal immigration, state sovereignty and the right to bear arms. He said he plans to stay in the race at least five months but will bow out if he is unable to raise $1 million and determines that the support "is not there" for his candidacy.

But, analysts say, a prolonged Berman campaign could siphon votes away from Perry, who has himself courted the conservative Republican base.

The match-up between Perry, the state’s longest-serving governor, and Hutchison, the state’s senior U.S. senator who has been in office since 1993, has been billed for months as an epic clash.

"Both sides have a pretty target-rich environment for negative campaign ads," said Harvey Kronberg, editor of the Quorum Report, an Austin-based political newsletter.

A typical GOP primary in a non-presidential year draws between 600,000 to 700,000 voters, but the projected turnout for the March primary could exceed 1 million. By some estimates, campaign spending could top $40 million.

"It looks to me like the race is continuing to tighten," said Jim Henson, director of the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas at Austin, which is planning to conduct an updated poll next week.

Perry’s performance

Hutchison, as well as the two Democratic contenders, have hammered away at Perry’s leadership, saying that he has failed to adequately address pressing issues and has been in office too long. But Perry has touted his stewardship as a strength, pointing out that Texas has consistently led the nation in job growth and avoided the economic pain that the recession has brought in other states.

Throughout the session, Perry said he was too focused on the Legislature to be concerned with Hutchison’s emerging candidacy. But Miner has assailed Hutchison’s performance in the nation’s capital, calling her "Senator Bail-out" and saying that she has not had "a significant piece of legislation" during her career in Washington.

The Democratic primary also offers the promise for robust campaign rhetoric as Schieffer and Friedman compete to run against the GOP winner in the November 2010 general election. Other contenders could also emerge.

Although Schieffer’s tenure as an ambassador in the Bush administration has made him vulnerable to criticism within the party, he has presented himself as a lifelong Democrat and recently named a diverse team of party stalwarts to his leadership team.

The group includes former Texas House Speaker Pete Laney and state Rep. Senfronia Thompson, D-Houston, dean of Democrats in the Texas House. Longtime Democratic activists Gilberto Hinojosa of Brownsville and Susan Longley of Austin will co-chair the campaign.

Friedman, seeking to convince voters that his candidacy is more than a punch line, is portraying himself as a Democratic populist in the mold of former Gov. Ann Richards and legendary U.S. Rep. Barbara Jordan. He said he plans to make a formal announcement after conducting "a listening tour" across the state.

"I can be funny," he said in a recent telephone interview, "but these are not funny times."