CHEYENNE - Republican vice presidential candidate Gov. Sarah Palin will visit Wyoming next week for a campaign fundraiser in Teton County, the state Republican Party announced Thursday.

Palin, the Alaska governor who became Sen. John McCain's surprise running-mate pick earlier this month, will meet with donors at the Teton Pines Country Club and Resort in Wilson on Sept. 24.

"It's fair to say the response has already exceeded our expectations," said Dick Scarlett, who along with his wife, Maggie, serves as finance co-chairman for the McCain-Palin campaign in Wyoming. "We only hope we have a place large enough to hold all the people who want to come."

Invitations to the early-morning event will be sent out soon, and members of the public can request invitations by calling state GOP headquarters in Casper, party officials said.

Donors will have three opportunities to meet with Palin during her visit. A $2,500 donation pays for breakfast, a seat at a roundtable with Palin and a photo. A $1,000 donation pays for breakfast and a photo with Palin. A $250 donation pays for breakfast with the candidate.

Palin, the first Republican woman even nominated for vice president, will squeeze in the Wyoming fundraiser between visits to Colorado and Nevada, said Scarlett, adding that Palin is on a multistate tour in the Rocky Mountain West.

Some political analysts believe the region could play an important role in determining the next president in November.

Next week's event will give Wyoming donors a rare chance to meet a candidate who is only just becoming known to the nation. Some Wyoming Republicans were already crowing about the candidate's arrival.

Winnie Loveless, a Republican in Worland, said she's thrilled that Palin has chosen to acknowledge Wyoming with her visit. Loveless also said she is pleased to see her party nominate a woman for vice president.

"I think it's wonderful that a woman is finally in a position that she can have some of the top government positions. I really do," said Loveless, who is a homemaker. "I think women are extremely capable of organizing and running government offices and legislating."

Palin s visit could also give Wyoming Republicans a boost.

Several Republican presidential contenders visited Wyoming before the primary, including former U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson of Tennessee and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

But the national Democratic Party managed to steal the show when presidential candidates Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., and former President Bill Clinton visited the state and gave speeches ahead of the state Democratic caucuses.

The national Democrats continued to monopolize the spotlight by holding their national convention in nearby Denver last month.

But Palin's appearance in Teton County could shift attention back to the GOP, while introducing Palin to Cowboy State voters and to the West.

"The excitement in the country is behind Sarah Palin as the first Republican woman vice presidential candidate," said Amy Larimer, executive director of the Wyoming Republican Party. "And we're just hoping to keep that momentum going."

Contact reporter Jared Miller at (307) 632-1244 or at jared.miller@trib.com.