Texas Gubernatorial Primary Results Tonight

Jillian Bandes | March 02, 2010 4:13 PM

Polls don't close until 7pm in the hot Texas GOP gubernatorial primary, but tonight will probably not be the end of this complicated race. Since Texas GOP rules require a candidate to earn more then 50% of the vote in order to win, and none of the three leading candidates are expected to win that much, there will likely be a runoff on April 13. That means the GOP will simply have more time to tear itself apart in the Lone Star state, a scenario that will probably have nothing but negative implications on a national level. After all, party infighting is the one thing that threatens to bring down the GOP this November.

Preliminary polling gave spoiler candidate and birther conspiracy theorist Debra Medina with 16 percent of the vote. 48 percent backed incumbant Gov. Rick Perry, and 27 percent supported Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison.