Posted by Tina
The 44-year-old Republican, Alaska’s first female governor, arrived at the Capitol in 2006 on an ethics reform platform after defeating two former governors in the primary and general elections. Today, she was ready to leap to the national stage as GOP presidential candidate John McCain’s surprise choice for running mate, according to two senior campaign officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because the announcement was pending. *** She already has a national reputation for bucking her party’s establishment and Alaska’s powerful oil industry back home. *** With ethics the centerpiece of her campaign, Palin defeated incumbent Gov. Frank Murkowski, who served 22 years in the U.S. Senate before winning the governor’s seat in 2002. *** Her task didn’t seem any easier in the general election, but she handily beat Tony Knowles, a popular Democrat who already served two terms as governor. *** During her first year in office, Palin distanced herself from the powerful old guard of the state Republican Party, even calling on Sen. Ted Stevens to explain to Alaskans why federal authorities were investigating him. *** Palin describes herself as a “hockey mom” and an occasional commercial fisherwoman. She lives in Wasilla, a town of 6,500 about 30 miles north of Anchorage, with her husband, Todd, a blue-collar North Slope oil worker who competes in the Iron Dog, a 1,900-mile snowmobile race. He is part Yup’ik Eskimo. Houston Chronicle