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,
Richard Foster (Alaska politician) Richard Foster (Alaska politician) Neal Richard Foster (August 9, 1946 – October 13, 2009) was a Democratic member of the Alaska House of Representatives, representing various districts centered on Nome, Alaska from 1989 until his death. Though a Democrat, he frequently caucused with the Republicans and served for a period of time as the Majority Whip. He died of a heart attack while receiving treatment for kidney disease. His oldest son, Neal Foster, was appointed to replace him, and was elected to his own term in 2010. At the time of his death, he was the second longest-serving member in