Sarah Palin to Speak at CPAC; Hasn’t Endorsed GOP Candidate Yet

After a four-year absence, former Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin will serve as the closing speaker at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on February 11 in Washington, D.C.

In a statement, Al Cardenas, the chairman of the American Conservative Union (ACU), praised the selection.

“Few national conservative leaders in America today energize and inspire our grassroots activists like Governor Sarah Palin. Her strong record of leadership, championing of our shared principles and magnetic personality have made Sarah Palin a hero to millions of conservatives across the country,” he said.

“As we ready for the critical 2012 election, I’m honored to welcome Governor Palin to the Conservative Political Action Conference for the first-time ever.”

ABC News reported that things were not always so rosy between Palin and CPAC. She rejected an invitation to speak at the conference last year – some speculated it was because a gay Republican group was also going to attend.

The prior year, she declined to attend the CPAC because of questions related to the business dealings of David Keene, the chairman at that time.

Among the other confirmed speakers at CPAC will be Newt Gingrich, Senator Jim DeMint, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Governor Scott Walker and Senator Marco Rubio.

Separately, Palin told Fox News that she has not chosen to endorse a GOP presidential candidate yet; following John McCain’s expressed support of Romney.

Palin told Sean Hannity: “McCain found his person much sooner than I was able to find my person. No, I'm still in that process with probably 70 percent of Americans trying to decide.”