Kay expected to make Big Announcement this afternoon in Dallas

Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison is expected to make a big announcement at 2pm today in Dallas regarding the financial status of her campaign and perhaps, as we say here in Texas, formally 'throw her hat in the ring' for the 2010 republican gubernatorial race.

Robert Wilonsky at the Texas Observer writes today:

"...her campaign communications director, Hans Klingler, just told Unfair Park: U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison's going to be at Dallas County Republican Party HQ on N. Central Expressway to "announce when she's going to announce" her run for Texas governor. That's just a brief peek at her remarks, which she'll deliver at 2 p.m. today, as Hutchison comes home to also offer campaign supporters a look at the amount of dough she's raised thus far as she vies for Rick Perry's job. Perry yesterday announced he'd raised $4.2 million during just nine days in June.

Earlier this morning, Kay's campaign released a teaser YouTube video featuring Texans for Kay Statewide Finance Chairman John Nau. In the video Mr. Nau says:

I have raised money for many years here in Texas to support philanthropic and political causes. I've never seen an outpouring of support like we have witnessed for the last six months for Kay Bailey Hutchison. It is not only impressive, its exciting. I look forward to her announcing her candidacy and working hard, with many people across this state, to guarantee that she wins and becomes the governor of our great state of Texas.

We'll post information from KBH's 2pm announcement in Dallas as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, at least one Austin-based political reporter is crying foul over the location of Kay's announcement. Gardner Selby at the Austin American-Statesman set his Twitter and Facebook status as:

Hutchison dodging Capitol press? She's huddling with Dallas press about finances today: http://budurl.com/3u3b #txlege #hutchison #rickperry

Sources tell us that we'll be able to watch Kay's announcement live via her website at http://texans.forkay.com/pages/livestream

We'll be live blogging the 2pm announcement here at http://www.kayvsrick.com

Gov. Perry claims $9.3 Million in Campaign War Chest

Gardner Shelby at the Austin American-Statesman is reporting this afternoon that:

Gov. Rick Perry’s campaign revealed today that it ended June with $9.3 million cash on hand, having raised $4.2 million in the last nine days of the month, which was the only period this year that he could legally accept donations.

For the moment—and surely just for the moment—that means Texans for Rick Perry is reporting more cash on hand than Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison’s gubernatorial committee, which entered this year with nearly $8 million cash on hand, a tally that then outpaced Perry’s end-of-2008 cash balance of $6.6 million.

Hutchison’s campaign, which could legally raise money through the regular legislative session and post-session veto period, is widely expected to report much more cash on hand by the time all finance reports are due a week from today.

The two are expected to face off for the GOP gubernatorial nomination in March.

Today, Perry’s campaign didn’t release his full report and it disclosed no information on who precisely accounted for his end-of-month haul.

But broadly, the campaign said it had raised $4.23 million—including $454,094 online—from 1,076 donors from June 22-June 30, which it said nearly doubled the amount he collected over a similar time period after the 2005 regular legislative session. (UPDATE: By my math, the campaign’s contributions this June fell $455,410 short of doubling the $2,343,248 Perry’s campaign raised in the June period of 2005—about 10 percent shy of a doubling.)

Jim Lee of Houston, one of Perry’s state finance chairs, said: “This is a remarkable accomplishment and a ringing endorsement of Gov. Perry.” He noted that 95 percent of the contributors are from Texas, “showing that Texans continue to appreciate and value his leadership.”

The Austin American-Statesman is awaiting a response from Kay's campaign.