Add Chris Bell to your list of candidates who might show up in the special election to replace retiring Sen. Kyle Janek, R-Houston, later this year.

The Houston Democrat, a former congressman and city councilman, says he's been getting "a lot of calls" encouraging him to run.

Two and maybe three Republicans are in the hunt. Janek is backing Austen Furse, who's raising money and actively campaigning. And Grant Harpold, a Houston attorney and GOP precinct chair, has announced his candidacy. Former Harris County GOP Chairman Gary Polland has talked about it, but hasn't announced his plans.

Janek plans to retire on June 2 and unless Gov. Rick Perry declares an emergency election, Janek's successor will be chosen in a special election on November 4 — the same day as the general election.

That timing forces current House members to choose between running for reelection or running for the Senate. Two of them — Republican Charlie Howard of Sugar Land and Democrat Scott Hochberg of Houston — have expressed an interest in running. Howard says he won't run if he has to forfeit the House seat. Hochberg says he won't make a decision until he knows what Perry plans to do.

Bell, meanwhile, is getting calls. The Austin American-Statesman got the first bead on the story with an interview of Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, who said he's among the people trying to talk Bell into the race. Watson lost a statewide race before turning to the state Senate; Bell, who finished second in the 2006 race for governor, would be in similar straits.

It's Republican turf, but not prohibitively so. Statewide Republican candidates won in SD-17, but by slightly smaller margins than they won statewide. The Texas Weekly Index there is 15.4, meaning that the average statewide Republican beat the average statewide Democrat by that many points in the last two election cycles. That's a Republican lean, but it's still competitive, particularly if it's a bad year for the GOP.

And some polling from the district — done by some of the people trying to draw Bell into the contest — hints that it might be a bad year, with 63 percent saying the country is on the wrong track, and 53 percent giving George W. Bush a negative job rating.

Bell, who's been thinking about running for U.S. Senate if and when Kay Bailey Hutchison gives up that post, admits he's mulling a change in direction. He hasn't made up his mind yet, but says running the state race doesn't necessarily take him out of contention if the federal seat opens up (Hutchison's current term is over in 2010, and there's been speculation — add three paragraphs of caveats and provisos here — that she'll resign early to focus on a run for governor).

The Texas Senate currently has 20 Republicans and 11 Democrats. Janek's seat is one of three where the hackocracy expects competition. The others: SD-10 in Fort Worth, where Republican Kim Brimer will face Democrat Wendy Davis; and SD-11, where Mike Jackson of La Porte will face Democrat Joe Jaworski of Galveston.

Former Comptroller John Sharp will head the newly formed Ryan Foundation, a charity formed by the Dallas-based tax consulting firm where he has been a principal. He'll give up the tax gig to run the foundation. The announcement for that outfit says it'll be funded with grants from Ryan, public and private partnerships, and the consulting firm's clients. Does this sound like a job description for someone who wants to run for office? "He will focus on improving the quality of life of others in the community though active participation in charitable outreach efforts."

State Auditor John Keel got the — take a deep breath — David M. Walker Excellence in Government Performance and Accountability Award from the National Intergovernmental Audit Forum. That's for "sustained contributions" to the craft and for leadership. His staff nominated him.

Missy Mandell left the Lower Colorado River Authority, where she was most recently manager of federal affairs, to open her own consulting firm. Mandell worked for a number of politicians before joining LCRA in 1989.

Gov. Rick Perry appointed:

• Three new members to the Texas State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners and tapped Bud Alldredge of Sweetwater to head that group. John David Clader of Pleasanton, David Kercheval of Grandview, and David Rosberg Jr. of Mason will join that panel. Kercheval is an exec with Agricultural Workers Mutual Auto Insurance. The other three are veterinarians.

• Joshua Carden of Weatherford, Cathy Landtroop of Plainview and Lewis Timberlake of Austin to the OneStar Foundation board. Carden is an attorney in Rep. Phil King's firm. Landtroop is a development officer at Texas Tech University. And Timberlake is a professional speaker.

• Wroe Jackson, a student at St. Mary's University School of Law, and Michael Savoie, director of the Center for Information Technology and Management at the University of Texas at Dallas, to the Guaranteed Student Loan Corp.