Poll: Alaskans Want Sarah Palin to Run for U.S. Senate

A new Harper Polling poll shows a plurality of likely Alaskan Republican voters support their former Governor, Sarah Palin, as a U.S. Senate candidate in the 2014 GOP primary over Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell and 2010 Senate candidate Joe Miller.

The survey of 379 likely Republican voters found that 32 percent support Palin, whereas 30 percent support Treadwell and 14 percent support Miller. The Harper Polling poll, conducted via telephone on May 6 and May 7 on behalf of the Tea Party Leadership Fund, found that 45 percent of likely GOP voters think Palin would “fight hardest for conservative values,” compared to 25 percent who thought that of Treadwell and 15 percent of Miller.

Similarly, the poll found 43 percent thought Palin would be the “strongest person to take on liberal Democrats in Washington,” whereas 27 percent thought that of Treadwell and 13 percent of Miller.

Both Treadwell and Miller have launched formal exploratory committee efforts for the 2014 primary race to determine who would face off against Sen. Mark Begich (D-AK). Palin has not indicated she would run.

The Tea Party Leadership Fund, the group that commissioned the poll, has been pushing to try to draft Palin to run for Senate. The group’s chief spokesman Niger Innis said this poll’s results show “Alaskans have made understood there is only one potential candidate for the U.S. Senate that will stand up and fight for their state and our nation against the bullying and tyranny of a Harry Reid-led Senate, and that’s Sarah Palin.”

“The only question that the poll didn’t answer is will Sarah Palin listen to Alaskans and answer the call to run?” Innis said.

In response to the poll, Tim Crawford, treasurer of Palin’s SarahPAC, said, “Governor Palin is grateful and honored by those Americans who support her and her beliefs. However, the draft Sarah Palin for senate fundraising campaign initiated by the Tea Party Leadership Fund is not authorized, endorsed or supported by Governor Palin or SarahPAC.”

Regardless of whether Palin decides to run in the end, her continued support from the grassroots is a sign that despite mainstream media attempts to write her into the history books, Palin is still an influential player in the political and cultural world.