Alaska Governor Sarah Palin is viewed favorably by 72% of voters in her home state, including 56% who hold a Very Favorable opinion of her.

The first Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in Alaska since Palin was selected as the Republican vice presidential nominee found that 68% say she is doing a good or excellent job as Governor. That’s up slightly from 64% who gave her good or excellent marks in July.

However, since she joined the national Republican ticket, 51% of Alaska voters say that Palin is doing an Excellent job as governor. That’s up from 35% in July.

Just 14% now say that Palin is doing a poor job as governor.

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Nationally, the woman who was barely known two weeks ago is now viewed favorably by 56% of voters, including 41% with a Very Favorable opinion (demographic crosstabs available for Premium Members).

By way of comparison, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, Senator Joseph Biden of Delaware, is viewed favorably by 53%, including 25% with a Very Favorable opinion.

These perceptions take on added weight since 68% of voters say the presidential candidates' running mates are more important this year than in previous election cycles.

Both, of course, have their detractors as well. Palin earns Very Unfavorable reviews from 26% of voters nationwide, Biden from 21%.

Palin and Biden both are well liked within their own party and less warmly received in the other party. Among unaffiliated voters, 54% have a favorable opinion of Palin and 49% say the same about Biden.

In terms of ideology, 78% of voters regard Palin as at least somewhat conservative, including 49% who say she is Very Conservative. Only 11% describe her as moderate. Biden, by contrast, is viewed as at least somewhat liberal by 48%, with 22% saying they regard him as Very Liberal. Thirty-one percent (31%) of voters describe Biden as a moderate.

In Alaska, there is no gender gap when it comes to views of Palin and how she is performing her role as governor. Nationally, she is viewed favorably by 62% of men and 51% of women.

At the end of the Republican convention, Palin received favorable reviews from 58% of voters nationwide. At the end of the Democratic convention, Biden was viewed favorably by 48%.

An earlier survey found that most Alaska voters—51%--say that Palin is more ethical than most politicians. Another 33% say she is as ethical as most politicians.
Palin's popularity is also being credited with giving a big bounce to indicted Republican incumbent Senator Ted Stevens' bid for re-election. Rasmussen Reports will release the latest data on the Senate race in Alaska

at 3 pm today. Presidential findings will follow at 5.

Rasmussen Reports also will release the latest numbers from North Dakota and New Mexico this afternoon.

Earlier this week, Rasmussen Reports released new presidential polling data for Colorado, Florida, Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

See survey questions and toplines. Crosstabs are available to Premium Members only.