2014 Alaska gubernatorial election and Mallott merged their campaigns to appear on the November ballot as a single independent ticket, which the Alaska Democratic Party endorsed. On this ticket, Walker ran for governor with Mallott as his running mate. Both candidates' former running mates withdrew. Parnell was considered vulnerable, as reflected in his low approval ratings. The consensus among "The Cook Political Report", "Governing", "The Rothenberg Political Report", "Sabato's Crystal Ball", "Daily Kos Elections", and others was that the contest was a tossup. Former Republican governor Sarah Palin, who had praised Parnell as her successor when she resigned in 2009, endorsed Walker and Mallott,
Jerry Ward Education, but resigned not long afterward. Jerry Ward Jerry Ward (born July 19, 1948) is an American politician and businessman. An Alaska Native born in Anchorage, Alaska, Ward served in the United States Navy during the Vietnam War and was in the Navy Seabees. Ward was in the real estate business. In 1982, Ward was elected to the Alaska House of Representatives as a Republican, serving from 1983 until 1985. In 1990, he won the Alaska Independence Party primary for Lt. Governor. However, he and his running mate, gubernatorial candidate John Howard Lindauer, stepped aside in favor of former Governor