Rep. Don Young of Alaska, who died on Friday, was first elected to Congress in a 1973 special election. Alaska hasn’t held a special election for a federal office since, and there will be news rules in place when Alaskans choose Young’s replacement. It’s doubtful that Sarah Palin understands how the rules work.
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) said that she would, if asked, fill the seat left vacant by the late Alaska Rep. Don Young (R) “in a heartbeat.”
“Think of those huge shoes that are to be filled when we consider Don Young’s longevity and his passion, his love, his fighting spirit for our wonderful state of Alaska and for the nation as a whole,” the former governor added.
“If I were asked to serve in the House and take his place, I would be humbled and honored and I would. Yeah, in a heartbeat I would,” Palin told Newsmax in an interview, adding that “we’ll see how this process is going to go in terms of filling that seat but it would be an honor.”
The “process” is unusual but it’s defined in law. First there will be an all-party primary in which only the top four finishers qualify for the general election. Then there will be a ranked choice election where the fourth place finisher’s votes are reassigned if no one has an outright majority. If there is still no majority, then the third place finisher’s votes are reassigned, and this will produce a winner.
No one is going to “ask” Sarah Palin to serve in Congress. She will have to earn the position and that will require more than one heartbeat’s worth of work.
As stated above, her first challenge is to finish in the top four in an all-party primary. Given that the last time Alaskans elected her, she quit the job before completing a single term, I’m not sure if she’ll be seen as a good choice. Based on her name recognition, she’ll probably be a serious contender, but there’s a reason Don Young served in the position for almost half a century. Alaskans expect their representatives to deliver goodies for the state, and seniority and hard work are key components to fulfilling that role.
Of course, whomever Alaskans choose will begin without seniority, but they’ll want some reason to believe that the new representative will have commitment to staying in the job. Nothing about Palin suggests she’ll have that kind of commitment nor that she’ll be a hard and diligent worker.
Notice that she doesn’t mention working for the job but hopes to just be appointed to the position, which is not how the law works.
We could see a Rep. Sarah Palin by midyear, but I wouldn’t put money on it.
