I read some blog post from just a few weeks ago from some gun rights lady (sorry for the vagueness) and he promised her personally he would fight for open carry.
Abbott has been very vocal about his support for gun rights, as adamant as he has been about other issues he's dealt with. I don't think it is fair to accuse him of "playing for the crowd" as that is not the kind of person he is. The man regularly posts pics of himself hunting and with firearms, I believe what he says and firmly think he'll be a great governor given the chance. I know he has my vote!
Is it just me, or was that article poorly written? I couldn't make it past the first couple of paragraphs because the thoughts were so randomly placed ... gun, public records, gun, personal property, gov databases ...
Anyways ... What I would like to see is not only the open carry and college campus carry, but also the K-12 carry since that's where I work and it's a main reason I haven't spent the money to get the CHL since I can't carry the majority of my time spent away from home (though it has crossed my mind since the latest round of legislation regarding it).
As for Abbott, he SEEMS to be an honest, straight up kind of guy. I don't know him personally, so I can only take what's presented at face value, but it definitely looks to be heading the right direction.
I don't even own a pistol but damn it'd be awesome for open carry to be legal in Texas. I'd buy one just open carry occasionally, this is Texas for goodness sake. Should be legal to carry Bowies too