Polarising Palin spies a way out of the political wilderness
It has been 14 years since Sarah Palin became one of the most famous politicians on the planet as the first woman on a Republican presidential ticket.
In the intervening years she has fallen into the political wilderness, trading the campaign trail for lucrative book deals and TV appearances.
But now she has spied an opening for a comeback with a vacant seat in Congress – and the backing of Donald Trump. The 58-year-old has revived the famed 2008 Republican Party campaign slogan, “Drill, Baby, Drill”, along with her populist appeal, as she champions energy independence with a late attempt to represent her native Alaska in Congress.
But in her hometown of Wasilla, where locals still simply refer to her as “Sarah”, many have soured on her political ambitions.
De Koranda, 62, said she was an early backer of Ms Palin, but, like many Alaskans, felt betrayed when she unexpectedly quit as the state’s governor 16 months early.
Coming soon after she and John McCain lost to Barack Obama and Joe Biden in 2008, the move saw her popularity nosedive amid speculation she was ditching Alaska for commercial gain.
“That was the point of no return,” said Ms Koranda, who described the “polarising” effect Ms Palin still has in Wasilla.
She added: “People here either love her or they wouldn’t touch her with a 10ft pole”.
Ms Koranda plans to cast her vote for Ms Palin’s main rival, Nick Begich, a successful businessman who has earned the backing of the state Republican Party.
Alaska’s sole seat in the House of Representatives has opened up after the sudden death of Don Young, who held it for nearly 50 years.
Ms Palin held a commanding lead in the first hurdle to serve the remainder of Mr Young’s term, which will be decided in a special election on Tuesday. But pundits suggest Alaska’s new ranked choice voting system could favour more centrist candidates.
In addition to Mr Begich, Ms Palin will face Democrat Mary Peltola, who is vying to be the first Alaska Native in Congress.
Ms Palin is also in the running to secure a full, two-year term as Alaska’s congresswoman in November’s general election. A second vote on Tuesday will determine the shortlist for that race.
Ivan Moore, a longtime pollster in the state, says that the race is “on a knife edge”.
His Alaska Survey Research group’s survey has put Ms Palin on 29.4 per cent and Mr Begich on 29.6 per cent in the first round of voting in the special election.
Ms Palin, he said, had received an early boost from her universal name recognition, but struggled to grow her positive ratings.
“She’s got a very devoted, Trumpian base,” he said, “but there’s only so many of them”.
Mr Begich has tapped into anti-Palin sentiment in the state – playing footage of Ms Palin rapping in a pink bear costume on reality TV show The Masked Singer – in attack adverts portraying her as a fundamentally unserious, celebrity candidate.
“She’s famous for what?” he asked a group of voters who had gathered in a living room just a short drive from Ms Palin’s home on Thursday night.
“For quitting,” came the response from the audience.
Mr Begich continued: “[She’s] famous for leaving the office, famous for cashing in on the opportunity, famous for dancing on stage in a pink bear costume… [she’s] not famous for representing our business case. In the Congress, this is very serious business.”
Among those who had gathered in the living room in Wasilla to hear Mr Begich was Laurie Vandenberg, a nurse and mother of five.
Ms Vandenberg described herself as a longtime Palin fan – even naming one of her children after Ms Palin’s eldest daughter, Bristol – after watching her electrifying performances during the 2008 presidential campaign.
But Ms Vandenberg said she was disappointed that Ms Palin was no longer willing to mingle with voters. “Nick is present, Nick is out there for everybody… she hasn’t been available,” she said.
Ms Koranda, another former Palin fan, chimed in. “She’s a media w----,” she said. “I think she’s gonna attract such a circus, she’s not gonna be able to get any work done,” she added, asking: “Is she in it for herself, or for Alaska?
Ms Palin has argued her fame would be an asset for a state with one of smallest populations in the United States. As Alaska’s sole congresswoman, she said, she could “pick up the phone and call any reporter and be on any show if I wanted to, and it would be all about Alaska”.
She has hit back, too, at what she called an “inaccurate” narrative that she left Alaska behind.
At one campaign event, she bemoaned spending $140 (£115) to fuel her truck due to rampant inflation and joked about a recent collision with a moose as proof she understands the concerns of ordinary Alaskans.
“That’s the sign of a true Alaskan
– I took a moose out of season,” she quipped.
On a recent visit, The Telegraph spotted very few pro-Palin campaign signs around the town, but some residents remain fiercely protective over their famous neighbour.
Jeanne Devon, an Alaska political blogger, said that the outcome of the race represented “the litmus test to see if Alaska is going full bore Trumpian”, but was also a broader indicator of the strength of “divisive politics in general’’.
Ms Devon, who co-authored a critical book on Ms Palin in 2011, said she would not have entered the race if she did not believe she could win.
“She’s actually very much like Donald Trump in that way. She’s very competitive, and hates losing,” she said. “And I think up until this point, she did not see a path to win.
“But watching the rise of the Trumpian Right, I think she feels that she can speak to those people.”