Pitbull Palin's Popularity Plummets

The pitbull in lipstick's popularity is taking a serious blow.

The vice-presidential also-ran Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is no longer the country's most popular governor -- and she isn't even Alaska's most popular politician, new polls show.

Palin, whose approval rating in March 2008 was a sky-high 85 percent, had only a combined 54 percent favorable rating in the latest Hays Research poll, which tracks Alaskan politicians.

She had a 41 percent combined unfavorable rating in the poll -- including nearly 25 percent of voters who said their opinion of Palin was "very negative."

The "gotcha" governor isn't even Alaskans' favorite politician in their own state -- that honor goes to Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who pulled an impressive 76 percent approval rating in the poll.

The Hays Research poll asked 400 Alaskans to rate their state government officials, including Palin and Murkowski.

Palin also lost the title of America's favorite governor this month, the Huffington Post reported. Palin dropped behind Connecticut's Jodi Rell, who earned a 70 percent favorable tally.

Palin has caught flack in the past several months for alleged ethics violations as well as for reportedly mishandling campaign funds. The governor this week refused more than $28.6 million in stimulus funding that would've helped to reduce energy consumption in Alaska, infuriating other state politicians who say the money is necessary to curb high energy spending. 

Palin was heralded as the new face of the Republican Party after the 2008 campaign -- conservatives felt she could rebrand the old-school GOP with a new, fresher image that some said could've earned her a win in the 2012 election.

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