Of all the races Palin can claim to have influenced, the one in her backyard is the clearest.
Joe Miller – a political nonentity with little experience, little money, and no name recognition – defeated incumbent Lisa Murkowski in one of the biggest upsets of the primary season.
“She can call him her senator. She elected him,” says Mr. Sabato.
Palin, who has long been at odds with the Murkowski family and defeated Senator Murkowski’s father, Frank Murkowski, on the way to becoming Alaska’s governor, came out early in support of Mr. Miller and helped put him on the national map.
Other factors – including Murkowski’s failure to respond to the barrage of negative ads run by the Tea Party Express – contributed to her razor-thin loss, but without Palin’s backing, it’s doubtful that Miller would have been a serious contender.
