Biography of Sarah Palin

In November 2006, Sarah Palin was elected as the first female and youngest governor of the US State of Alaska. She was the mayor of the city of Wasilla, Alaska from 1996 to 2002. She had also been a member of Wasilla City Council from 1992 to 1996 and chairman of Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission from 2003 to 2004. Sarah Palin, a running mate of Senator John McCain, was the Republican Party's first female vice-presidential nominee.

Brief Factfile

Born: February 11, 1964 in Sandpoint, Idaho
Political Party: Rebublican
Spouse: Todd Palin
Children: Track, Bristol, Willow, Piper and Trig
Residence: Wasilla, Alaska
Religion: Non-denominational Christian
Positions Held:

• Present governor of Alaska since December 4, 2006
• Chairperson of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission from 2003 to 2004
• Mayor of Wasilla from 1996 to 2002
• Member of Wasilla, Alaska City Council

Occupation:

• Politician
• Business
• Commercial fishing
• Former local sportscaster

Early Life and Education

Sarah Palin was born to Sarah Heath, a school secretary and Charles R. Heath, a science teacher and track coach, in Sandpoint, Idaho. She was the third of their four children. She was an infant when her family moved to Alaska. Since her father was a track coach, the family regularly ran 5 kilometer and 10 kilometer races.

Sarah Palin took part in many extra-curricular activities and was outstanding in many of them. She attended Wasilla High School and led the school's Fellowship of Christian Athletes chapter. She was a member of the girls' cross country team, and as captain and point guard of the school's basketball team, led them to win the Alaska State championship. Known for her aggressive and fierce style of playing, she was nicknamed 'Sarah Barracuda'. She is also a lifelong member of National Rifle Association.

She joined Hawaii Pacific College in Honolulu following her graduation from high school in 1982, but transferred to North Idaho College, after attending just one semester. Sarah took part in many beauty competitions too. She won the Miss Wasilla pageant in 1984. The same year she finished third in the Miss Alaska pageant. She moved to University of Idaho in 1984, where she attended only two semesters. Then she returned to Alaska and attended Matanuska-Susitna College for one term and was back again in University of Idaho in January 1986, spending three semesters and completing her bachelor's degree in communication - journalism. Later, she worked as a sports reporter for KTUU-TV and KTVA-TV in 1988.

Family Life

Sarah Palin was born into a Roman Catholic family. Her family joined a Pentecostal church, Assembly of God, that she attended until 2002. She later joined Wasilla Bible Church because according to her they offered children's ministries. She once called herself a 'bible believing Christian' in an interview.

According to her father, she was always a stubborn kid. She eloped with her childhood sweetheart Todd Palin in 1988. Todd works for British oil company, British Petroleum as an oil field production operator and owns a commercial fishing business, which is sometimes helped by Sarah. Sarah Palin has five children - Track (born - 1989), Bristol (born - 1990), Willow (born - 1995), Piper (born - 2001) and Trig (born - 2008) and one grandchild - Tripp Johnston born to Bristol and Levi Johnston.

Political Career

Palin was a member of the Wasilla City Council from 1992 to 1996. She was elected twice but could not complete her second term, as she ran for the city's mayor elections in 1996, which she eventually won. She was the Mayor of the city of Wasilla for three consecutive terms. One interesting fact about her first year in the office of mayor was that she kept a box in which the names of all Wasilla residents were put. Every week she would pick out a name, call the person and ask about the functioning of the city. This act of her's earned her respect and popularity among the people of Wasilla. On December 4, 2006, she became the governor of Alaska. She has done a lot for the state - most important being the development of oil and natural gas resources.

She was running mate of Senator John McCain in the 2008 US presidential elections, which they lost to Democrat Barack Obama. After the defeat of Senator John McCain, there were conjectures that she may run for president in the 2012 presidential elections. However, she denies such rumors, saying that she hasn't even given it a thought. She is currently writing a book for HarperCollins which is scheduled to be released in 2012.