John Gorman will join the growing crowd running for Glenda Dawson's spot in the Texas House. He's been active in Republican politics for years at the local level and was campaign treasurer for Jerry Patterson's 1992 Senate campaign (Patterson's now the state's land commissioner).

Dawson, a Republican state representative from Pearland, died in September  too late to be removed from the ballot — but won reelection in the November elections. The special election to replace her in HD-29 will be held on December 19. Three other candidates signed up, including Democrat Anthony DiNovo, a doctor who lost to Dawson a few weeks ago, and Republicans Mike O'Day and Randy Weber. All four hopefuls, like Dawson, are from Pearland.

Monday was the deadline for candidate filings.

The Republican Party of Texas has a new public face. Hans Klingler, a longtime political op on the GOP side, will be the state party's new political director and spokesman. The political half of the job had been handled by a couple of people — Jeff Fisher and Kevin Lindley, both of whom remain with the party. The communications bit belonged to Gretchen Essell, who's leaving.

Mary Camp is the new director of the Legislative Reference Library, taking the spot left when Dale Propp retired earlier this year. Camp has been the assistant director for two years and worked in a variety of jobs in the Capitol before that, including stints with former Sen. Bill Sarpalius and former House Speaker Billy Clayton.

After two years as acting director of the Legislative Budget Board, John O'Brien is free of the first half of that title. The LBB voted unanimously to make him the director. He's the replacement for John Keel, who retired from LBB two years ago after a decade in the top post, then came out of retirement a few weeks later to become the State Auditor. O'Brien started with LBB in 1989 and became deputy director in 2002.

Becky Young, executive assistant to House Speaker Tom Craddick since he took that office, is leaving before the session begins. She hasn't said what's next. Young worked for Rep. John Smithee, R-Amarillo, before joining Craddick.

Jesse Ancira Jr., associate deputy comptroller, says he'll leave the agency at the end of the year. Ancira, the number three official at the state comptroller's office, has been there for eight years and says he'll choose from a handful of private sector opportunities. He'll stick around for the month of December, as Comptroller-elect Susan Combs and her transition team move into the agency. Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn gives up the reins in January.

Billy Atkins, who's been the bingo boss at the Texas Lottery Commission for 14 years, resigned from the agency this week. He worked in the Pink Building before becoming, officially, the charitable bingo operations director, including stints as an aide in both the House and Senate. 

Michael Quinn Sullivan, who's been the public voice of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, is leaving after five years. They'll announce a replacement next week — that's apparently in the final stages — and he'll announce where he's going.

Deaths: Former state Sen. Frank Madla Jr., D-San Antonio, who died in a house fire with his granddaughter and mother-in-law. Madla, a former schoolteacher, was a quiet but effective lawmaker who became one of the Legislature's experts on water issues and pushed to get a major college campus to San Antonio's South side. Madla was elected to the House in 1973 and to the Senate 20 years later. He lost a reelection bid in the March Democratic primary and resigned last summer. He was 69.

Former legislator Temple Dickson, D-Sweetwater, after years of trouble with lung cancer. Dickson served in the House for three terms, took a 16-year break, then won a seat in the Texas Senate, where he served for four years. He was 72.

Dudley Harrison, a former state representative from Sanderson, after a long struggle with cancer. He was a rancher, car dealer and quarryman before serving eight years in the House and then ten years as Terrell County Judge. He was 77.

Former state Rep. Frates Slick Seeligson Sr., a lawyer, rancher and four-term legislator from San Antonio. He was 83.