By Emily Cadei, CQ Staff

Republican Tim Pawlenty will announce this summer whether he plans to run in 2010 for a third term as governor of Minnesota.

Pawlenty discussed this timeline -- and the pros and cons factoring into his candidacy decision -- during an interview with Minnesota Public Radio host Cathy Wurzer Thursday. “I’ve got a lot of energy and ideas left for leadership and service, but that has to be weighed against making sure you don’t overstay your welcome,” Pawlenty said on the network’s Morning Edition program.

Pawlenty said “family considerations and career considerations and a bunch of other factors” will ultimately determine whether he runs for governor or pursues another career path.

Minnesota is one of the few states that do not limit the number of terms a governor may serve, so Pawlenty is free to run again if he wants to. But Pawlenty endured bruising battles during the Democratic-controlled state legislature’s annual session, which ended with him taking control of the state’s budget via a rarely used executive power called “unallotment.”

Though it was a controversial move to make in a state that usually votes Democratic, the governor said he doesn’t think the flap would make a statewide run any more difficult than usual. “For me, it’s always tough,” he said. “I’m the Republican in a Democrat-leaning state, and any time you’re somewhat conservative in Minnesota and you run for election or re-election it’s always an uphill battle.”

And Pawlenty’s efforts to close the state’s budget gap did win him favor with conservatives, which could bolster his standing as a possible contender for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination.

Pawlenty, however, may not have much political margin for error back home. He won both of his terms as governor with less than majorities, winning with 44 percent and an 8-point margin in the 2002 race that had a competitive third-party candidate, and with 47 percent and just a 1-point margin when he was re-elected.

Pawlenty also may have another politically charged decision to make soon. The state Supreme Court next week will hear arguments on the appeal filed by Republican Norm Coleman, the former Senate incumbent who is seeking to overturn the ruling by a lower court panel that declared Democrat Al Franken the victor in the state’s still-unresolved 2008 Senate race. If the state’s high court rules against Coleman, Pawlenty will face strong pressure from Democrats to sign the certification of election that would allow Franken to be seated in the Senate -- but also would face strong pressure from Republicans not to sign if Coleman were to take his legal case to the federal court system.

Nonetheless, a recent Survey USA poll showed Pawlenty leading prospective Democratic candidates in hypothetical match-ups for 2010.