Republican Sean Parnell was serving as the state’s Lieutenant Governor in 2009 when then-Gov. Sarah Palin resigned her post, elevating Parnell to the state’s highest office. Parnell won a full term in 2010 with 59 percent of the vote. Parnell faces a unique situation in his bid for a second term. Shortly after the primary, Byron Mallot, the Democratic nominee, dropped his bid. He will now run for Lieutenant Governor on a ticket with attorney and independent candidate Bill Walker. While public polling in Alaska tends to be very unreliable, what is available all point to a closer than expected race. In fact, several polls have had Walker ahead, though more recent surveys give Parnell a slight lead. Political insiders contend that Parnell’s vulnerability can be attributed more to a weak political operation than to anything specific that he has or has not done in office. And, while Democrats are working hard for Sen. Mark Begich, it doesn’t appear that the Walker-Mallot ticket is going to benefit much from those efforts, especially when it comes to getting voters to the
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