Claim: Sarah Palin is American.

Sarah Louise Palin -LRB- -LSB- ˈpeɪlᵻn -RSB- née Heath ; born February 11 , 1964 -RRB- is an American politician , commentator , and author who served as the ninth Governor of Alaska from 2006 until her resignation in 2009 . As the Republican Party nominee for Vice President of the United States in the 2008 election alongside presidential nominee , Arizona Senator John McCain , she was the first Alaskan on the national ticket of a major political party and the first Republican woman selected as a vice presidential candidate . Also , her book Going Rogue has sold more than two million copies .   She was elected to the Wasilla city council in 1992 and became mayor of Wasilla in 1996 . In 2003 , after an unsuccessful run for lieutenant governor , she was appointed chair of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission , responsible for overseeing the state 's oil and gas fields for safety and efficiency . She was the youngest person and the first woman to be elected Governor of Alaska .   Since her resignation as Governor , she has endorsed and campaigned for the Tea Party movement as well as several candidates in multiple election cycles , prominently including Donald Trump for President in 2016 . From 2010 to 2015 , she provided political commentary for Fox News . On April 3 , 2014 , Palin premiered her TV show , Amazing America with Sarah Palin , on the Sportsman Channel , which ran until February 12 , 2015 . On July 27 , 2014 , Palin launched the online news network called the Sarah Palin Channel , which was closed on July 4 , 2015 .