RISE TO FAME

Though probably best known for her vice presidential nomination in 2008, Sara Palin had a long political career leading up to John McCain’s selection of her as a running mate.

Sara Palin first registered as a Republican in 1992, when she ran for a position on the Wasilla City Council. Winning that election in a landslide, Palin quickly became a local political favorite. She was re-elected for a second term in 1995.

In 1996, Sara Palin ran for mayor of Wasilla, and defeated incumbent John Stein by a wide margin of votes. As an opponent of high taxes and wasteful spending, her constituents rallied behind her. Palin continued to have a positive reputation in the community, frequently known to reach out and get grass roots information from the local residents. She managed to put property tax cuts and made significant improvements to the city nearly immediately after taking office. She remained in the good graces of the city residents by creating a strong administration, one that supported her goals of budget improvement and even cut her own salary by 10% to show her commitment to the process and results.

Sara Palin was re-elected again in 1999, successfully defeating John Stein a second time. During her second term as mayor of Wasilla, Palin was credited with bringing big business to Wasilla, compliments of the many property tax cuts, federal funding grants for city and governmental improvements and business incentives.

Following her two terms as Wasilla mayor, Palin ran for office as lieutenant governor of Alaska. While she was narrowly defeated by another Republican, Loren Leman, Palin continued her upward political movement, eventually being appointed to the Alaska Oil and Gas Commission in 2003. By this time, Palin was a strong political presence in Alaska, widely respected for her fights against unethical conduct and procedures as well as her determination to forward resource management and business growth throughout the state.

In 2006, Sara Palin achieved national recognition when she was elected as the first female and the youngest ever Governor of Alaska. With a platform focused on educational advances, resource management, business development and infrastructure improvements, Palin easily defeated incumbent Tony Knowles, despite being heavily outspent during the campaigning process. Palin fought tirelessly to “clean up” Alaska politics, at every level of government, and was held in high regard by most voters. Alaska’s economy continued to grow, partly related to the changes brought about by Palin. One of her final acts as Alaskan governor involved canceling a project involving the construction of a bridge, known as the “Bridge to Nowhere,” a pork barrel project criticized by many as a frivolous and unnecessary project. While Palin received some harsh criticisms by some for this decision, many Alaskans continued to support her choice to retain the Federal funding after the project was eliminated. Additionally, her political support to construction projects along the Alaskan pipeline, though controversial, is generally considered to be significant toward the management of natural resources.

In August 2008, Sara Palin was tapped to be the vice presidential running mate for Republican

John McCain, as he ran for United States President. Her powerful presence and generally positive political reputation made her a solid choice for McCain, and by adding a running mate who was a woman, a mother, and a political powerhouse he seemed to instantly secure entire segments of the national demographic of voters in his favor.

While she quickly became a controversial figure, many strongly supported Sara Palin. She was named one of America’s “Top 10 Most Fascinating People” in 2008, and was named as one of the world’s “100 Most Influential People” by Time Magazine in 2010. Her strong campaign presence, intelligent debates, and fundraising successes brought a new voice to the Republican party, opening up further opportunities, including a possibility that she would again run for a top political spot in the 2012 election.

Sara Palin resigned from her position as governor of Alaska in 2009, after a seemingly endless litany of accusations regarding ethics and political decisions. Citing the point that she was spending her time defending herself, she stated that she was no longer able to properly do the job she was elected to perform, thereby costing the taxpayers too much money.

Her autobiography, Going Rogue: An American Life, was released in November 2009, and features heartfelt detail about both her private and public lives. The book sold over 300,000 copies the first day it was released, and quickly reached the one million copy mark and topped the bestseller list.