Perry says Palin to campaign for him

CONROE, Texas (AP) - Gov. Rick Perry said Wednesday Sarah Palin is committed to campaigning for his re-election bid and that he welcomes the support of the soon-to-be-former Alaska governor.

Perry, after a luncheon speech to a Lions Club in Conroe north of Houston, told The Associated Press that he intends to complete the full four years if he's re-elected next year to a third term. Palin, the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee, resigned the governorship of Alaska in a surprise announcement last week before completing her first term in office.

Republican Perry already is the longest-serving Texas governor. He faces a likely tough primary fight from U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison. Palin was the GOP vice presidential nominee in 2008.

Also on Wednesday, Perry's campaign said it raised $4.2 million over a nine-day period at the end of June and that it has $9.3 million in available cash. That amount raised is nearly twice what Perry collected in the same period four years ago as he prepared to head into his 2006 re-election bid.

Midyear fundraising figures are required to be filed with the Texas Ethics Commission next week.

There was no word Wednesday afternoon on the amount Hutchison raised. She reported having nearly $8 million in campaign cash at the end of 2008, most of it transferred from her federal campaign account.

While Hutchison could freely raise money for her gubernatorial bid this year, Perry was banned from doing so because of the five-month legislative session and the veto period that followed it. He was able to raise money starting June 22, shortly before the reporting cutoff date at the end of the month.

The money race is an early indicator that the contest will be rough and expensive, costing tends of millions of dollars. It could be a barometer for the GOP nationally in a tug of war between social conservatives, who mostly back Perry in Texas, and more moderate Republicans like those who are expected to support Hutchison.

Kelley Shannon reported from Austin, Texas.