Undated (AP) Like John McCain, Alaska governor Sarah Palin is a conservative with a maverick streak who has shown a willingness to clash with others in her own party.

A self-styled hockey mom and political reformer, Palin is a first-term governor who's held the job for less than two years.

The 44-year-old Palin is a former Mayor of Wasilla who became governor in December 2006. She has a national reputation for bucking her party's establishment and Alaska's powerful oil industry.

More recently, Palin has come under the scrutiny of an investigation by the republican-controlled legislature. It's looking into the possibility that Palin ordered the dismissal of Alaska's public safety commissioner because he would not fire her former brother-in-law as a state trooper.

She and her husband, Todd Palin, have five children. The latest was born last April with Down Syndrome.

The Palins have said there was never any doubt they would have the child -- after learning in the fourth month of pregnancy that the boy had Down Syndrome. Governor Palin said: “we've both been very vocal about being pro-life.”