Sarah Palin ‘Seriously Interested’ in 2016 Presidential Run
The web nearly exploded recently in response to Sarah Palin being “seriously interested” in running for president in 2016. Although the Washington Post, Time, and Huffington Post are calling foul, Palin’s confirmation of interest in becoming president is a move many of her followers on social media have been awaiting.
Established in 2012, a Facebookcommunity page entitled “Sarah Palin for President 2016” is very active in supporting the Former Governor of Alaska’s potential candidacy. Palin, who told Washington Post that”You can absolutely say that I am seriously interested” regarding entrance in the presidential race, hasn’t made any solid commitments to doing so.
With nearly six months until the first debate scheduled in August 2015, Palin’s lack of confirmed commitment has led many political journalists to conclude she’s not as serious as she claims. Chief Political Correspondent of the Washington Examiner, Byron York, was motivated to write a piece outlining the GOP’s “Palin problem” and announcing its return.
Fan of Palin or not, all parties can agree there hasn’t been much more than talk from the former vice presidential candidate. Until her appearance at the Iowa Freedom Summit, the biggest news to hit the virtual racks included a birthday brawl and bizarre remarks about President Obama, as reported by the Inquisitr. What didn’t make it into headlines in 2014 was a clear, public intent to run for president, which was an expected response to Hillary Clinton’s highly publicized interest.
According to ProCon.org, a research group on a mission “to educate without bias,” the process of becoming president is very intensive, often involving years of pre-election campaigning and fundraising. After Palin’s recent statements about being “seriously interested” in becoming president, the fact that no actions have been taken to back up her claim is causing party members on both sides of the aisle to raise an eyebrow.
As Palin is aware from her 2012 vice presidential run, the fight to become president starts well before the general election and requires interested parties to spend countless hours traveling, raising money, and speaking with constituents. With slightly more than a year remaining until the Republican National Convention, Sarah Palin would need to put in serious work to gain support.
Despite her lack of active campaigning, Palin is featured on US Presidential Election News‘ website as one of two female Republicans identified as possible candidates for the 2016 election alongside Susana Martinez, current Governor of New Mexico.
Should Palin move beyond being “seriously interested” in running and start actively campaigning, she would balance out the number of female candidates from both major parties. Current female Democrats identified as possible candidates include Former First Lady Hillary Clinton and Elizabeth Warren, a U.S. Senator from Massachusetts, the former of whom is currently outpacing Palin as a likely candidate.
