AUSTIN – If Texans were drafting their fantasy football team, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison would be the No. 1 pick, and Democrats would sit on the bench for the first few selections.

Looking two years into the future, a new poll released today showed that Ms. Hutchison is more popular than Gov. Rick Perry and that either of them could beat potential Democratic candidates in a governor's race.

The most popular Democrat on the list was Chris Bell, a former Houston congressman who ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2006. He was selected by 13 percent of respondents.

Next were Houston Mayor Bill White (10 percent) and former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk (8 percent).

No politician won a majority of likely voters. Of all likely voters, Ms. Hutchison was favored by 35 percent of to Mr. Perry’s 22 percent.

In a possible gubernatorial primary match-up, Republican respondents favored the senator by 50 percent to the governor’s 23 percent.

The poll by the Texas Lyceum, a nonpartisan public policy group, had an almost equal number of Republicans and Democrats – and the GOP usually has an 8 percent advantage in Texas general elections. Even with the possibility of Democrats voting in the same number as Republicans, both Mr. Perry and Mrs. Hutchison were poised in the poll to beat Mr. White in a head-to-head race – Ms. Hutchison 34 to 25 and Mr. Perry 32 to 29 percent.

“Kay Bailey Hutchison is pretty much at the top of the charts in Texas. She is one of the most recognizable and liked politicians in the state,” said University of Texas political scientist Daron Shaw, who helped conduct the Lyceum poll.

That she is seen as more popular than Mr. Perry isn’t surprising, he said, because governors, as top executives, have to make tough decisions and are held more accountable.

Because the poll is two years out from the actual race, 20 percent are undecided and 16 percent said they were unlikely to support anyone on the list.

Other choices included former Comptroller John Sharp and comptroller candidate Paul Hobby in the Democratic column. Among Republicans, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, Railroad Commissioner Michael Williams and state Sen. Florence Shapiro were also tested. All of them polled in single digits.

The Democrats were equally represented because those polled self-identified with the party more than usual, and that could be the result of an abnormally energized base, Dr. Shaw said.

Still, none of their candidates could compete well on the field with Republicans. “It’s not the kind of encouraging news that the Democrats might have hoped for,” he said.

In addition, Mr. Dewhurst, despite holding statewide public office for nine years, is still seen in the second tier of politicians and others could prove a stout challenge to him, Dr. Shaw said.

The scientific telephone poll of 1,000 adult Texans was conducted Jun 12-20. The margin of error is 4.5 points, meaning the answers could vary by that amount in either direction.