By Paul Steinhauser, CNN Deputy Political Director
New Orleans, Louisiana (CNN) -- When Sarah Palin speaks in public, she always finds the media spotlight. Or maybe the spotlight finds her.
Either way, the former Alaska governor will again be firmly in front of the cameras Friday afternoon, when she addresses the Southern Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The three-day event is billed as the largest GOP gathering of party officials, operatives, activists and strategists before the 2012 Republican National Convention, when the party will formally nominate its candidate for president.
While the 2012 election may seem far in the future, early jockeying is already under way, and the conference is considered the first real cattle call for possible Republican White House hopefuls.
The conference is "kind of like the jump-start for the 2012 presidential cycle," says Roger Villere, the Louisiana GOP chairman and one of the organizers of this year's conference.
While only Palin knows whether she will indeed make a bid for her party's presidential nomination, it's a safe bet that her speech is the most anticipated of the eight possible White House hopefuls who are addressing the convention.
The other seven are former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who spoke Thursday night; Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, who is chairman of the Republican Governors Association; Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal; Texas Gov. Rick Perry; Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, who was a 2008 Republican presidential candidate; Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana; and former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania.
Three others who are most likely considering presidential bids are not attending: Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who ran for the GOP presidential nomination in 2008; Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty; and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who also was a candidate last time around.
Palin has found the political spotlight shining on her quite often so far this year. The 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee gave the keynote address at the first National Tea Party Convention in Nashville, Tennessee, in February, which was carried live by cable news networks. So was her speech at a campaign rally in Arizona last month for her running mate, Arizona Sen. John McCain, who is attempting to fend off a primary challenge from the right from former Rep. J.D. Hayworth.
And Palin was the main attraction on the cable news networks the next day, as she helped kick off the third Tea Party Express national bus tour. The event was held in Searchlight, Nevada, hometown of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who also faces a very tough re-election this year. Tea Party Express is backing efforts to defeat Reid in November.
Palin made news last week, with what some called a controversial fundraising "hit list" that targeted 17 House Democrats from districts that McCain and Palin carried in 2008, who voted for the Democrats' health care reform legislation.
Earlier this week, she made news again, as she announced in an interview on Fox News that she is a strong supporter of embattled Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele.
"I think he's doing a great job," Palin said.
Her comments came a week after Palin asked RNC officials to remove her name from an invitation that suggested she might attend a series of GOP fundraising events at the New Orleans conference. Steele is under fire for his running of the organization, after news surfaced that the RNC expensed a night out a risqué Los Angeles, California, nightclub for donors earlier this year and ran up large bills for luxury hotel stays and private jet travel.
Expect to see more of Palin. The darling of conservatives and hero to the Tea Party movement headlines another Tea Party Express rally next Wednesday in Boston, Massachusetts. Organizers predict a large crowd for the event. And Palin is scheduled to address the Susan B. Anthony List, a prominent anti-abortion group, and the National Rifle Association next month.
The big question regarding Palin's White House prospects is if Republican voters take her seriously as a contender. According to a CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll conducted last month, Romney, Palin and Huckabee are all bunched together at the front of the pack within a few points of one another in a hypothetical 2012 GOP presidential nomination horse race. All other Republicans polled single digits.
But only 46 percent of Republicans questioned in an ABC News/Washington Post survey from February thought Palin was qualified to be president.
Potentially troubling numbers for someone who may -- repeat, may -- have ambitions to live in the White House.
CNN
