By Rob Moritz
Arkansas News Bureau

LITTLE ROCK — State Sen. Gilbert Baker is not taking his narrow victory in last weekend’s state Republican U.S. Senate straw poll for more than what he says it was: A fundraiser for the party.

Far from the end of the GOP primary campaign, Baker says the real contest could just be beginning, with possibly more hopefuls entering the current field of seven.

The Senate Republican from Conway garnered 35 percent of the vote in Saturday’s straw poll held in Hot Springs, edging out Little Rock businessman Curtis Coleman’s 33 percent. Retired Army officer Conrad Reynolds of Conway placed third with 23 percent in the party’s first test of strength for would-be challengers to Democratic incumbent Blanche Lincoln’s bid for a third term next year.

“This was a straw poll, it was good for the party and it was a fundraiser for the party,” Baker said Monday. “I’m thrilled I won, don’t get me wrong, but I’m not so sure that it necessarily indicates front-runner status.”

Absent from the balloting were two potentially formidable candidates who are considering making runs of their own — former state Sen. Jim Holt of Springdale, who garnered 44 percent of the vote in a loss to Lincoln in 2004, and Stanley Reed, a former president of the Arkansas Farm Bureau and former member of the University of Arkansas Board of Trustees.

Baker said he would welcome both Holt and Reed into the already crowded GOP field. “Those guys have not announced and there maybe others to get into the race,” he said. “Right now, I think it’s a race between I guess seven of us … and you know it may get to be a race between nine of us, or maybe once we get to filing it may be 10, it may be three.”

Neither Holt nor Reed immediately returned telephone calls seeking comment Monday.

Rounding out the seven in Saturday’s Republican straw poll were Tom Cox of North Little Rock with 4 percent, state Sen. Kim Hendren of Gravette with 2 percent, Fred Ramey of Searcy with 2 percent and Buddy Rogers of Rogers with 1 percent.