(PTI): In a surprise move, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin seen as a potential 2012 Republican presidential candidate declares that she will step down as the head of state.
Palin, who was John McCain’s running mate in his failed 2008 White House bid, said she would step aside as governor in ‘another few weeks’ and be replaced by Lieutenant Governor Sean Parnell.
Palin in a surprise press conference at her lakefront Wasilla, Alaska home said that she wanted to “take a stand and effect change, not just hit our head against the wall and watch valuable state time and money.”
“I am determined to take the right path for Alaska even though it is unconventional and it is not so comfortable. With this announcement that I am not seeking re-election, I have determined it is best to transfer the authority of governor to Lieutenant Governor Parnell.”
She said that she would rather “effect positive change outside government at this moment in time on another scale and actually make differences for our priorities.”
Palin arrived on the political scene in Alaska in 2006, a self-described ‘hockey mom’ and small-town mayor who ousted the incumbent governor to become the youngest person and first woman to hold the post.
Two years later, Senator McCain drafted her as his running mate. During the fall campaign, she was by far the most polarizing figure on the trail, drawing huge, devoted Republican crowds, but deeply negative reactions from Democrats and many independents.
Tags: Alaska, Governor, Resign, Sarah Palin