Jan. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has formed a political action committee that bills itself as an advocate of “energy independence” and could be helpful if she decides to run for president in 2012.

SarahPAC will “make it possible for Governor Palin to continue to be a strong voice for energy independence and reform,” according to its Web site. The PAC will support candidates who “share Governor Palin’s ideas and goals.”

The Republican governor is the fourth unsuccessful 2008 candidate in her party to form a political action committee after Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee and the person who put her on the national ticket, John McCain. Palin, mentioned as a potential presidential candidate in 2012, can use her new PAC to travel around the country, campaign for other Republicans and donate to campaigns.

Romney’s PAC made $239,716 in contributions after he withdrew from the presidential race, while Huckabee’s PAC donated $35,794. After McCain lost to Barack Obama, he announced the formation of his own PAC, Country First.

Palin energized the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota, after presidential nominee McCain chose her to run for vice president as the first woman to run on the Republican ticket. She failed to win over most female voters and her popularity waned, polls showed. Sixty percent of those questioned said she wasn’t qualified to be president, CNN reported after the election based on exit polls.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jonathan D. Salant in Washington at jsalant@bloomberg.net.