The Republican Party was rejected. That was mostly because of the economic crisis which gutted McCain's chances of getting elected, partly because of McCain's own incompetence, partly because of Obama's brilliant speeches and impressive cool, partly because of Palin's incompetence.

It would be a serious error to credit it all to Sarah Palin, and she is definitely popular with a certain segment of the American public. She could build on that, specially if Obama makes some noteworthy mistakes in the next 3 and a half years and the public gets angry at the Democrats.

On the other hand, she could dwindle off into obscurity. I don't have a crystal ball on that, and neither do you.