Kay Bailey Hutchison To Serve Out Senate Term

Kay Bailey Hutchison

Kay Bailey Hutchison will keep her seat in the United States Senate after she was defeated in a primary bid for the Republican nomination for governor. She previously said that she would resign her seat, first before the primary election, then after the primaries were decided.

According to the AP, a senior GOP official and a Senate aid confirmed that Hutchison would finish her third term in office, ending in 2012.

Last month, 20 Texas Republican House members signed a letter asking her to stay in the Senate. "We understand your desire to go home to Texas and spend more time with your family. But we hope you realize how necessary your continued service in the U.S. Senate is, for Texas and for our country, " the letter said.

The decision was announced officially in San Antonio this morning at a press conference with Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell and her fellow Texan Senator John Cornyn.

Several politicians from both the Republican and Democratic parties had been waiting to see whether or not Hutchison would stay with her previous announcements to step down. Democrats saw it as a possible win in a Senate seat they haven't held for 17 years, although Republicans would probably be favored to keep the seat.