In the small town of Wasilla on Sunday, some of the colleagues who helped her rise years ago weighed whether to support her bid for Alaska’s lone congressional seat in the state’s special election and primary on Tuesday. “Sarah is conservative, but she seems to be more drawn to politics than to values,” said Scott Johannes, 59, a retired contractor who attends Wasilla Bible Church. He said he was undecided. “I think her influences are out of state now,” he said. But nearby, at another Wasilla church attended by Ms. Palin, Joelle Sanchez, 38, said she still believed Ms. Palin stood with Alaskans, even though she did not always agree with the candidate’s sharp personality. Relatives and friends of Ms. Sanchez have been divided over whether to support Ms. Palin’s run for Congress, he said. “I feel like she’s being looked at through a dirty lens,” said Ms. Sanchez, a pastor at Church on The Rock, which has leaned toward Ms. Palin’s support. “I won’t vote until I spend time doing a little more research,” he added. In churches and coffeehouses, on conservative airwaves and on far-right social media, Alaska voters have debated Ms. Palin’s motivations for making a political comeback — whether she’s interested in public service or more fame. Ms. Palin, a former state governor and 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee, cleared a hurdle in June when she led a field of 48 candidates in a special primary to fill the seat of longtime Representative Don Young, who died in March. as he was flying home. But he faces his next test Tuesday in a complicated special election that will allow voters to rank their top choices. Ms. Palin’s campaign did not respond to multiple requests for interviews. In a lengthy interview with The Anchorage Daily News after announcing her candidacy in April, Ms. Palin disputed claims that she was not committed to Alaska. “The establishment machine in the Republican Party is very, very, very small. They have a loud voice. They hold purse strings. They have the media’s ear. But they don’t necessarily reflect the will of the people,” Ms Palin told the newspaper.
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Interviews with two dozen voters and strategists in Wasilla, Palmer and Anchorage on Saturday and Sunday documented the challenges facing Ms. Palin, who won the endorsement of former President Donald J. Trump, but pollsters say she has a tough hill to climb in November because of her low approval ratings. Several voters said Ms. Palin had abandoned Alaska after she resigned from the governor’s office in 2009 amid ethics complaints and legal bills. But Ms. Palin’s support remains strong among other Republicans, including conservative women who have followed her political rise and seen themselves in her struggles as a working mother. “She’s genuine, she’s authentic — what you see is what you get,” said TJ DeSpain, 51, an art therapist who attended an outdoor concert in Palmer and said she was drawn to Ms. Palin’s rock star presence. “She looks like Alaskan Barbie.” Ms. Palin faces several candidates in the special election to fill out the remainder of Mr. Young’s term. They include Mary Peltola, a Democrat who could become the first Alaskan in Congress, and Nicholas Begich III, the Republican scion of the state’s most prominent Democratic political family. Tara Sweeney, a former Trump administration official, is a write-in candidate. The special election, which for the first time will allow voters to rank their choices, is being held alongside the state’s nonpartisan primary to fill the House seat from 2023 onward. In that race, voters were asked to choose from a slate of 22 candidates of all parties and affiliations that included Ms. Palin. The new ranking system has rankled some Republicans who argue it dilutes their vote. Ms. Palin has encouraged supporters to rank her — and only her. Establishment Republicans have urged party voters to rate Ms. Palin and Mr. Begić in the top spots, fearing that Ms. Peltola, a Democrat, could pave the way to victory. Should Mr. Begić or Ms. Peltola prevail in the special election, a win for either could serve as a major boost to momentum and name recognition. In Wasilla and the nearby town of Palmer, several voters still remember the days when Mrs. Palin competed in beauty pageants and starred on the high school basketball team. Some said they admired how she never seemed to lose her down-to-earth persona even as her star rose, and how she always seemed willing to strike up a conversation at the local grocery store or Target. And many had also not forgotten 2008, when Ms. Palin burst onto the national stage as Sen. John McCain’s running mate and seemed to take on a new and unrecognizable persona. Her anti-establishment language has since come to define the Republican Party, and other candidates have followed suit. Some Alaskans see her status as a far-right celebrity as an advantage, as do some callers on “The Mike Porcaro Show,” a conservative talk radio program. They argued that Ms. Palin would be able to draw attention to Alaska in a way that a lesser-known newcomer to Congress would not. But her fame probably cost her support as well. “Now she likes to be in the spotlight with all these vulgar comments and things,” said Jim Jurgeleit, 64, a retired engineer who said he was voting for Ms. Peltola. Ms. Palin has mostly been on the reality TV circuit promoting other out-of-state Republicans since leaving the governor’s office. Some argue he has spent more time on conservative Newsmax or the lower 48 states than on the campaign trail. Janet Kincaid, 88, owner of the Colony Inn in Palmer, once opened her lakeside home in Wasilla to a $20,000 fundraiser when Ms. Palin ran for governor. Now, he preferred to talk about Mr. Begic, for whom he has hosted two fundraisers. “To be honest, I’m a big supporter of Nick Begich,” he said. “I think he would be better for the job.” On Monday afternoon, Ms. Palin’s former in-laws also hosted a fundraiser for Mr. Begić at their home in Vasila. Jim Palin, the father of Ms. Palin’s ex-husband, Todd, declined to comment on Ms. Palin. But when asked why he was backing his ex-fiancée’s opponent, he said, “He’s going to stay in this job as long as we want.” At a vintage car show in downtown Palmer, Richard Johnson displayed his 1963 Pontiac Grand Prix. He said he still saw Ms. Palin as a reflection of his old, conservative values and planned to vote for her. “She’s resigned,” he added, “but at least she’s standing for something.”
