Campaign For Mayor in 1996
In 1996, Palin had been serving on the city council for four years, and decided to run for mayor. She defeated three-term incumbent mayor John Stein, running on a platform of "fresh ideas and energy".
In the campaign, she vowed to replace "stale leadership" and criticized Stein for wasteful spending and high taxes. She also introduced campaign issues such as abortion, gun rights, and term limits into the race. Although the mayoral election was non-partisan, the state Republican party ran advertisements on her behalf. Palin did not brandish her religious views during that campaign, but did play up her church work. A local cable TV program referred to Palin as Wasilla's first "Christian mayor," which prompted an objection from Stein who noted that he and several previous mayors were Christian.
Read more about this topic: Early Political Career Of Sarah Palin
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