Alaska Lieutenant Governor Sean Parnell will run against long-time Republican Rep. Don Young, the Associated Press reported over the weekend. Parnell, who won election to the LG's office after serving as a state senator and state representative, is the second prominent politician to join the race against Young, whose troubles with an investigation surrounding an oil services company could get worse before they get better.

What separates Parnell and former State Rep. Ethan Berkowitz, another top candidate challenging Young, is that Parnell is part of a new wave of Republicans in the state intent on ridding the Alaska GOP of what they see as a corrupt old boy's club. Parnell was elected on a ticket with Governor Sarah Palin, who in turn cleaned the clock of then-Governor Frank Murkowski, also a Republican, in the 2006 primary.

Young, who has been in office since winning a special election in 1973, has experience chairing the House Resources Committee and the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, and like long-time Republican Senator Ted Stevens, he's steered millions to his home state thanks to his influence on Capitol Hill. Visitors to his posh Rayburn Building office are greeted by a massive bear pelt tacked to the wall.

The idea of facing Parnell is not one that Young likes. After Parnell's announcement, in Anchorage, Young, who had held a press conference earlier, offered a snappy comeback. "I beat your dad and I'm going to beat you," Young said, referring to his Democratic opponent from 1980, who Young bested by a wide margin.

Given recent polling data, though, Young has an uphill battle to fight. A recent poll from the Hays Research Group showed 55% of Alaskans viewed him unfavorably, Politico's Josh Kraushaar reports. The 40% who view him favorably may, though, be enough to get him through the Republican primary on August 26, in which he will face Parnell and State Rep. Gabrielle LeDoux.

The winner of that primary will face the winner of a Democratic primary featuring Berkowitz, former state Democratic Party chair Jake Metcalfe and frequent candidate Diane Benson, who faced Young in the general in 2006. Berkowitz, the former Democratic leader in the State House, is favored to win the primary and, should he face Young, could steal the seat for Democrats; an early December poll showed him leading the incumbent by seven points in a head-to-head matchup.

If Parnell pulls out a GOP primary win, though, Berkowitz may have a tough time in an overwhelmingly Republican state. The last time the two met, in the Lieutenant Governor's race in 2006, the Palin-Parnell ticket beat out their Democratic rivals by about seven points.