- Sarah Huckabee Sanders joins Pawlenty campaign: And yes, she’s related to that Huckabee — the father and daughter teamed up in 2008 when she was the political director for his presidential campaign. With her dad ultimately opting not to run in 2012 following a boatload of speculation, it seems like she thinks Tim Pawlenty is still a force to be reckoned with in the GOP primaries, despite disappointing early reviews. The Pawlenty campaign has said she’ll be leading their efforts in the Iowa Straw Poll, which Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman have already opted not to bother with — it looks clear that Pawlenty’s strategy hinges much more on appealing to social conservatism than either of those two. source