2010: Sibley, Standing By

Former state Sen. David Sibley, R-Waco, is talking to people about getting back into the Legislature when Sen. Kip Averitt, R-Waco, gets out.

Averitt decided after filing for reelection that he wants to do something else, but it was too late to get off of the ballot and without any effort, he won the GOP nomination Tuesday night for a job he no longer wants.

He's got two decisions to make. He's the GOP candidate until he withdraws his name from consideration. And he's a state senator until he resigns or his term ends.

If and when he withdraws his name from consideration for reelection, the chairs of the ten county Republican parties in SD-22 will vote to choose a successor to put on the ballot. Darren Yancy, who lost to Averitt on Tuesday, would like to get that support, but Sibley is working the chairs, too.

Averitt could resign from office, setting up a special election, before he takes his name off of the ballot. The local party people wouldn't be required to give the November ballot spot to the winner of that special election, but the results could sway their decision. Averitt has to resign by the first week of April to force a May election; after that, Gov. Rick Perry would have the option of calling an election immediately or waiting until the next election date, in November.

Reached on the phone after the election, Averitt said he's not ready to make a comment about his plans, other than repeating his desire to leave: "I am out of here."

Sibley was elected to the Senate in 1990. Averitt was his chief of staff before winning a House seat in 1992, and he succeeded Sibley in 2002. Sibley has been lobbying since he left the Legislature.