The Palin impact

Tuesday night Governor Sarah Palin took the stage in front of the country and the world. It was a historical speech, not only for Palin, but Alaskans as well. While the speech itself is historic, the full impact of the governor's nomination may take years to understand.

"No doubt, it's put Alaska on the map in a way we've never been before," said Anchorage School Superintendent Carol Comeau.

Comeau says after Palin was nominated as the vice presidential candidate, there has been a lot more political interest in the schools.

Comeau added, "I encourage all teachers to be talking all of this, with current events, as part of their ongoing discussion. Because I think it's real world and I think it's certainly is current with our

governor as one of the prime candidates."

Andrew Halcro, who ran against Palin in 2006, says it's huge.

"For the first time in history we have an ambassador on the stage, in front of the nation, talking about Alaska in a very personal manner."

Halcro says he thinks it's a great opportunity to present Alaska in a very compelling fashion, talking about all the opportunities that Alaska has to help with the rest of the country with oil and gas development.

"I think this is the center of the universe. And I think Alaska will continue to be the center of the universe for the next couple of months," said Halcro.

Part of that is fueled by the fact that Governor Palin was such an unknown to most Americans.

Carol Comeau said, "I think that's the benefit of all of this right now, it captures interest. Hopefully more young people will register to vote, and hopefully in that 18 to 25-year-old group, which is where the lowest voter turnout is around the country."

Kay Brown with the Alaska Democratic Party agrees this has intensified interest from all political parties. Brown believes Palin's vice presidential nomination will increase attention to what's happening in the election and possibly result in a big voter turnout.

To contact Karina, call 907-273-3186.