'''James Richard "Rick" Perry''' (b. 1950) has served as the [[Republican]] Governor of [[Texas]] from December 2000, when he succeeded then-Governor [[George W. Bush]], to a term scheduled to last until 2010. A former Democratic state legislator who became a Republican in 1989, Perry was elected to a full term as governor in 2002, which he served, and then reelected to another full term in 2006 with only 39 percent of the vote. Previously he served as the agriculture commissioner (1991-1999), reflecting his background as a college graduate with a degree in animal science. | '''James Richard "Rick" Perry''' (b. 1950) has served as the [[Republican]] Governor of [[Texas]] from December 2000, when he succeeded then-Governor [[George W. Bush]], to a term scheduled to last until 2010. A former Democratic state legislator who became a Republican in 1989, Perry was elected to a full term as governor in 2002, which he served, and then reelected to another full term in 2006 with only 39 percent of the vote. Previously he served as the agriculture commissioner (1991-1999), reflecting his background as a college graduate with a degree in animal science. |