Palin steps down as governor of Alaska

Nation & World News

Palin steps down as governor of Alaska

Sarah Palin

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin announces July 3 that she will not seek re-election and that she was transferring power for the balance of her term to her lieutenant governor.

Sarah Palin and her husband Todd address the crew of the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis on June 22. Palin lost as Republican vice presidential candidate in 2008 running with Sen. John McCain.

Sarah Palin posed in a yoga position for the magazine Runner's World. She told the magazine she thought she could beat President Obama in a long distance race because of her endurance.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., i s joined by Palin on election night in Phoenix. President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden defeated the Repbulican candidates in the historic election.

Vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin practices her speech at the Xcel Center in St. Paul about 7:20 a.m. She spent about 10 minutes looking out into the nearly empty arena, discussing where she would stand and look during her speech.

A sign supporting Palin provides the background for Republican presidential candidate John McCain and his running mate at a campaign event in O'Fallon, Mo.

Palin signs autographs at an election rally in O'Fallon, Mo.

Sarah Heath Palin, 44, is the current governor of Alaska and the youngest person and first woman ever elected to that office. Previously, she served as a city councilman and mayor of Wasilla, Alaska. She later served as Ethics Commissioner of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission but resigned that post in protest over what she perceived as ethics violations by fellow Alaskan Republican leaders. In this photo, Palin is sworn in as governor in 2006 alongside her husband, Todd.

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin talks to her daughter Piper, 8, in her office in Anchorage, Alaska. She is married to Todd Palin, a champion snowmobile racer, and they have five children. In high school, she was the point guard on a state championship basketball team. She was first runner-up in the 1984 Miss Alaska pageant which helped her attend the University of Idaho where she earned a degree in journalism. After college, she worked as a TV sports reporter and met her future husband.

Despite being from an oil-rich state, Palin is noted for her independence from big oil companies. On social issues, the fiscal conservative is pro-life and against gay marriage. Alaska was one of the first U.S. states to pass a constitutional ban on gay marriage. An avid hunter, she is a lifetime member of the National Rifle Association. She has admitted to trying marijuana when it was legal in Alaska, but said she did not enjoy it.

Palin, throughout her career, has drawn the ire of her rivals. As mayor of Wasilla, a recall effort led by the local sheriff and a former mayor failed. Later, after resigning her state ethics watchdog post, she filed formal complaints against other officials, including former Alaska Attorney General Gregg Renkes, who resigned.

Gov. Sarah Palin speaks to reporters regarding the indictment of U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens in her Capitol office in Juneau, Alaska. The self-described "hockey mom" has been credited with eliminating wasteful spending, including killing the infamous "Bridge to Nowhere" project that had become a nationwide symbol of wasteful earmark spending.

Members of the Palin and McCain families at the Buckeye Corner, a Columbus, Ohio, store.

Gov. Sarah Palin with daughter Piper during a rally in Dayton.

Sarah Palin's parents, Chuck and Sally Heath, were inundated with phone calls and visitors when their daughter was tapped as Sen. John McCain's vice presidential running mate.

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin waves the starting flag for snowmobile racers, including her husband Todd, at the beginning of the 2,000-mile Iron Dog snowmobile race, Sunday Feb. 11, 2007, in Big Lake, Alaska. Todd Palin has won the race multiple times.

Members of the Palin and McCain families during a campaign rally in Dayton last year. From left: Todd Palin, husband of Gov. Sarah Palin; daughters Piper; Willow and Bristol, holding Trig. Second from right is Cindy McCain, wife of Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, and their daughter Meghan.

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and her daughters, from left, Bristol, Piper and Willow, inspect a bedroom of the Governor's Mansion as Palin arrives in Juneau, Alaska, for the first time since her 2006 inauguration. Palin's oldest child, Track, is serving in the Army. Her youngest child, Trig, was born in April with Down Syndrome.

Laurie Serino, left, talks about high food prices with Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin in Barrow, Alaska. Palin, holding her infant son Trig, could persuade many female voters to consider voting for the McCain-Palin ticket.

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Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin announces July 3 that she will not seek re-election and that she was transferring power for the balance of her term to her lieutenant governor.

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