Former Republican state Rep. Sandy Greiner of Washington has launched a political action committee aimed at convincing former Gov. Terry Branstad to enter the race to take on current Gov. Chet Culver in 2010.

Conservative news aggregator TheBeanWalker.com first reported Wednesday morning that Greiner, who served 16 years in the Iowa House, started the Draft Branstad PAC and an accompanying Web site, www.DraftBranstad.com.

“Like  so  many  Iowans,  I  desire  experienced  leadership  in  these  challenging  times  our  state  faces,” she said. “Therefore,  I  decided  to  organize  an  effort  to  encourage  Gov.  Branstad  to  run.”

Six men are currently seeking the Republican nomination for governor in 2010: Bob Vander Plaats, Chris Rants, Christian Fong, Paul McKinley, Rod Roberts and Jerry Behn. Branstad has hinted that he is interested in joining the race for months, going so far as to ask former Republican state chair Rich Schwarm to assess the fundraising and staffing he might need for a fifth run for governor.

The Draft Branstad movement also comes after a series of anonymous attacks were launched against the former governor, including fliers distributed around the Des Moines area and a Web ad attacking his 16 years in office.

Greiner attempts to counter some of those attacks, which question his social conservative credentials by, among other things, pointing to his appointment of a the Supreme Court Justice who penned the ruling legalizing same-sex marriage and increasing the state’s sales tax.

“Gov.  Branstad,  a  Catholic,  was  a  staunch  supporter  of  school  choice  during  his  governorship,  believing  that  parents  make  the  best  decisions  about  their  children’s  education,” Greiner said. “He  also  is  a  real  pro‐life  leader,  having  signed  a  parental  notification  bill  into  law  –  even  gaining  Democrat  support  to  pass  this pro‐life legislation. Also, in 1998, Governor Branstad signed SF 2073 into law, a bill that banned partial birth abortions.”

Branstad also worked to gain passage of the Defense of Marriage Act, Greiner points out, although that was the law struck down by the Iowa Supreme Court in April.

A potential Branstad candidacy has sparked a whirlwind of opinions on the former governor’s likely chances should he enter the race. Some social conservative activists fear his campaign would start a civil war in the party, pitting moderate Republicans in Polk County against conservative activists around the state. Others believe Branstad may be the only figure who can successfully unseat an incumbent governor, pointing to recent polling that shows Culver defeating all currently active Republican candidates.

Culver said recently that Branstad’s potential candidacy has helped his campaign by energizing the base and increasing fundraising. A poll released Monday by Survey USA shows Culver with an approval rating of 36 percent, down fro 44 percent in July and down from 57 percent in December.