To some people, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is a "rock star."

Or at least, that's what some attendees of the "Road to Victory" rally at Franklin & Marshall College's Alumni Sports & Fitness Center on Harrisburg Pike said Tuesday afternoon.

"I was supporting (Sen.) John McCain before, but I wasn't as excited about the campaign," Lancaster resident Brian Anthony said. "I think (Palin) has livened things up and made the race fun for Republicans again."

Some carried signs that read, "You Go Girl!" and "Sarah Rocks!"

"We're Sarah's groupies," said Natalie Yost, who came from Berks County to attend the rally. "There's a bunch of us here who think she's the star of the show."

Palin, Alaska's governor and the newly minted Republican nominee for vice president, appeared onstage wearing a red, cropped blazer with matching red heels. The fitness center was packed, and whenever Palin finished a sentence, the cheers were deafening.

"We're going to Washington to shake things up," Palin said, looking at Sen. McCain. "And (McCain) is the only candidate who has served America — in good times and bad."

Palin, 44, is a mother of five. Until recently, the former beauty-pageant contestant and mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, was best known for her nearly two years as governor.

She already had given a boost to McCain's fundraising efforts. Of the $47 million he raised in August, $10 million came in the three days after he announced Palin as his vice presidential running mate, the campaign said.

Some who attended the rally attributed Palin's popularity to her anti-abortion stance.

"She put a face to the cause — a very high-profile face," Lancaster resident Abby Kest said. "I think for some people, that's very important."

Palin, known to be outspoken in her anti-abortion views, is one of many government officials in favor of abstinence-only sex education.

Three days after she was announced as McCain's running mate, the campaign disclosed that her 17-year-old daughter, Bristol Palin, was pregnant by her boyfriend, Levi Johnston, 18.

"I don't think that's hurt her," Kest said. "It's the kind of thing that can happen to any family. And it hasn't changed her beliefs in the least, which says a lot about her character."

At Tuesday's rally, McCain and Palin referred to themselves as a team of "mavericks" and told the audience that victory wasn't far off for American troops in Iraq.

Palin also said she and McCain would guarantee "change," unlike their opponent, Sen. Barack Obama.

"Some politicians use 'change' to promote their careers," she said. "Other candidates use their their career to promote change. (McCain) doesn't run with the Washington herd."

Recently, the Obama campaign has criticized the McCain-Palin campaign's new ad called "Original Mavericks," which includes a claim that Palin stopped the so-called "Bridge to Nowhere," a nearly $400 million proposal to use federal money to build a bridge to an island in Alaska occupied by 50 residents.

According to published reports, Palin voiced support for the project during her campaign to become Alaska's governor, although she was critical of the project's size and later abandoned plans for the project. Palin used the money Alaska received from the federal government for other projects.

McCain and Palin didn't respond to the criticism during the rally. Instead, Palin mentioned "expanding energy alternatives" that should be provided by "American ingenuity and American workers."

"There's a time for politics, a time to campaign and a time to put country first," Palin said.

After the rally, she took the time to sign autographs before getting back on the campaign bus.

Those who attended the rally said they were impressed with the way Palin handled herself and expressed confidence in her ability to handle her critics.

"So far, she hasn't buckled under the pressure," Daniel Anderson of Lebanon said. "That business with her ex-brother-in-law hasn't made her sweat much either."

Alaska's Legislature is looking into allegations that Palin fired Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan when he refused to fire her ex-brother-in-law, a state trooper involved in a custody battle with the governor's sister.

Palin has denied wrongdoing, and her supporters have told news organizations that the investigation has become a "political circus."

"I think picking Palin was a good thing," Anderson said. "Most the people I've met here today were supporting McCain before he announced Palin — but now things have gotten more interesting. We feel inspired."

Video of Sen. John McCain and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin at F&M

Photographs of Sen. John McCain and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin at F&M

E-mail: cdifonzo@lnpnews.com