Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin could soon represent the state in Congress. The seat, which was formerly occupied by Don Young, is now vacant after the longtime Congressman passed away last week. Palin said she would be “humbled and honored” to be tapped as a candidate during an interview with Newsmax on Monday.
Don Young died this past Friday at the age of 88. Young, who was the oldest member of both the House and Senate, had served as Alaska’s lone U.S. Rep. since 1973. He is set to lie in state in the U.S. Capitol on March 29.
“If I were asked to serve in the House and take his place, I would be humbled and honored,” Palin told Newsmax host Eric Bolling. “In a heartbeat, I would. We will see how this process goes in filling that seat — it would be an honor.”
"It would be an honor."@SarahPalinUSA responds to calls urging her to replace the late Don Young's seat in the House of Representatives. pic.twitter.com/Vpd6Sn6Ssg
— Newsmax (@newsmax) March 21, 2022
If Sarah Palin seeks the GOP nomination for Alaska’s At-Large Congressional District, she will be subjected to a “marathon” of elections in the immediate future. Whoever the GOP nominates to replace Young will first have to win a special election, then go through the primary process and finally, the general election, all within a span of five months. The upcoming elections will also be Alaska’s first cycle under a new voting system.
According to the Anchorage Daily News, the Alaska GOP has said they want the focus in the immediate days to be on Young’s legacy. A Democrat who is also seeking to replace Young told the publication that conversations are “undoubtedly” going on behind the scenes, however. “Anyone worth their salt is doing scenario planning right now, figuring out who’s in and what that means,” said Chris Constant, a Democrat who launched his U.S. House campaign last month.
Whether the Alaska GOP plans on tapping Sarah Palin for congress remains to be seen.
Later on the interview, Palin discussed the Biden Administration’s policies with a particular focus on energy. “Some people, certainly not in the White House, are aware of what petroleum products are, what transportation costs affect when it comes to supply chain. [But] because of their lack of education or purposeful destruction of so many sectors of the economy — they certainly look to blame somebody else,” Palin told Bolling.
Alaska’s ninth governor pushed back on the Biden Administration’s assertion that Putin is to blame for America’s record-setting gas prices. “Americans do not believe at all when Jen Psaki and the president try to point the finger at another world leader for the economic problems we’re having because of their policies shutting down our own development of the God-given resources we have untapped in America.”
Gas prices reached an all-time national average high of $4.33 last Monday, according to AAA, and hit $5 per gallon in California.
