Howard Dean might be the frontrunner in the race to chair the Democratic National Committee but it appears as one of the major "anti-Dean" candidates has just picked up a nice endorsement. The AP reports:

The man in charge of rebuilding the Democratic Party after Richard Nixon's 1972 landslide Republican victory is backing Texan Martin Frost for the party's chairmanship.

Bob Strauss called Frost, a former U.S. House member, "the winning strategist, innovative organizer and proven spokesperson" Democrats need to rebuild and win.

[...]

Strauss, a Texan, led the DNC after Nixon beat Sen. George McGovern for a second term. Republicans also gained 12 seats in the House that year. Strauss' work led up to the 1976 election of Jimmy Carter, who was the last Democratic president to carry Texas.

"I know how tough it is to take over a party after a tough election and so does Martin Frost," Strauss said in a release issued by Frost.

Frost might not be the biggest name in the race, but with experience heading the DCCC (at a time when the party picked up seats in the House), he could be a very effective party chairman.