Speculation on 2012 Sarah Palin Run Already Raging

Nov. 4, 2010— -- Speculation about the 2012 presidential contest, especially as it relates to Sarah Palin, grew more intense almost as soon as polls closed on Tuesday, even with key midterm election races still to be decided.

Over the course of the 2010 campaign season, Palin solidified her role as one of the Republican Party's brightest stars, pulling dozens of candidates into her orbit through endorsements, public appearances, Facebook messages and tweets. The candidates the one-time Republican vice presidential nominee aided showed a mixed record of wins and losses on Election Day, but Palin accomplished much more than helping elect any individual candidate.

With every step she took on the campaign trail in 2010, Palin raised her profile and sparked endless conversation about her presidential ambitions. Still, political observers -- and even detractors within the Republican Party -- continue to question how serious she is about pursuing the nomination two years from now and whether she has the political muscle to take on President Obama.

"She's got a hell of a lot more qualifications than Barack Obama had when he ran for president," former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani said on ABC's "The View" on Wednesday. "Let her run. If she's as bad as you think, she'll lose. If she can really make her case, she will win."

Giuliani was among the supporters who rushed to Palin's defense earlier this week after a Politico story quoted anonymous Republican sources who expressed concerns about whether the party would be best served with Palin as nominee in 2012.

Besides enjoying better name recognition than any other possible Republican presidential hopeful and a position of power within the newly-emboldened Tea Party movement, Palin now has something else going for her: a cadre of candidates she endorsed who soon will take office in key House, Senate and governor's seats and who are in Palin's debt.

Even some of the candidates on Palin's most-favored list who lost their races on Tuesday, such as Delaware's Christine O'Donnell and Nevada's Sharron Angle, could prove helpful to the former Alaska governor's presidential ambitions if they emerge as prominent figures within the GOP.

But Palin is by no means the only beneficiary of the Republican Party's sweeping electoral successes. Potential 2012 contenders Mitt Romney, Tim Pawlenty, Newt Gingrich, Mike Huckabee and a handful of others also used the election season to travel to key states, supporting candidates and possibly lay the groundwork for their own presidential runs.

And many of them do not appear to be wasting any time.