Sarah Palin is running for Congress
Former Alaska governor and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin announced Friday that she will run for a House seat to fight the "far left" that she said is "destroying the country."
Palin, 58, joined a packed field of nearly 40 candidates seeking to fill the seat vacated by the late US Rep. Don Young, whose death last month sent Alaskan politicians into a frenzy.
In a statement, Palin said, “Public service is a calling, and I would be honored to represent the men and women of Alaska in Congress, just as Rep. Young did for 49 years.
"America is at a turning point," she said in the statement. "As I watched the far left destroy the country, I knew I had to step up and join the fight."
Sarah Palin, Former Governor of Alaska and Vice Presidential Candidate, Is Running for Congress
She said she was running to fight the far left that is 'destroying the country'
Sarah Palin became a household name when she became the late Senator John McCain's running mate for the 2008 election. A year after his loss, Palin resigned early as governor of Alaska and has not held public office since. .
Palin said her fellow Alaskans, like the rest of the United States, are struggling with rising inflation rates, supply shortages and rising gasoline prices, problems she blamed on the far left and the current administration.
"At this critical moment in our nation's history, we need leaders who will fight the leftist socialist agenda, big government, the last America," she said.
"I am in this race to win it and join the fight for freedom alongside other patriots willing to sacrifice everything to save our country."
Palin first entered public office nearly 30 years ago when she won a city council seat in her home of Wasilla, Alaska, and she became mayor in 1996.
She rose to fame and was elected to the governor's seat in 2006.
Palin was in her first term as governor of Alaska and became a household name overnight when the late Senator John McCain chose her as his presidential running mate during the 2008 campaign.
She was the first Republican woman to be selected to serve as vice president, but the Republican ticket lost that race to Democrats Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
In July 2009, Palin announced that she would not run for re-election and that she would step down as governor before the end of her first term.
She has not held any public office since then.
Palin has joined a packed field of nearly 40 candidates seeking to fill the seat vacated by the late US Rep. Don Young (right), who passed away last month.
Palin recently made headlines for her with her libel suit against the New York Times, which she lost, as well as promoting her new boyfriend, New York Rangers legend Ron Duguay.
The couple was photographed celebrating Palin's birthday in New York City on February 11.
Palin is seen in court in Manhattan on February 15 as the jury returned its verdict, despite the judge's decision to dismiss the case, which became known the day before after jurors received notices on their phones.
However, Palin has continued to be in the public eye, through appearances in conservative outlets like Newsmax and on reality shows, including The Masked Singer.
She also drew attention when she began dating New York Rangers legend Ron Duguay, as the two were photographed enjoying romantic meals during her most recent birthday in New York City.
She was in the spotlight recently following her court loss to the New York Times in February, whom she sued for allegedly defaming her in a June 2017 editorial that incorrectly linked her to a 2011 mass shooting in Arizona where they were killed. six people and then-Congresswoman Gabby. Giffords was seriously injured.
The Times acknowledged that the editorial misdescribed both the map and any link to the shooting, but said the error was not intentional.
A day before the February 15 verdict, US District Judge Jed Rakoff said he would dismiss the case because Palin had failed to show that the Times acted with "actual malice."
Palin's attorneys have asked the court for a new trial and asked that Rakoff be disqualified from the case.
