There are always many candidates in the running 'berto but typically only the republican or democratic candidates will ever get enough support and funding to have a real shot at winning.

This is why the Tea Party candidates choose to align themselves with the republican party. While this is a windfall for the republicans as the Tea Party has brought them a focused segment of the conservative movement, it's also problematic for the Tea Party who must also have to associate themselves with republican candidates they do not necessarily agree with to insure their candidates have a shot at winning.

Rick Perry, who has been the governor of Texas for 10yrs is what is typically called a RINO here, which means republican-in-name-only