A staggering 37 million viewers tuned in to watch Sarah Palin on Wednesday night – pushing her above the Olympics opening ceremony, the Oscars and the “American Idol” season finale.
Palin’s speech at the Republican National Convention also nearly eclipsed Barack Obama‘s record-breaking and over-the-top acceptance speech in Denver last week.
Obama – who enjoyed a massive buildup to his Invesco Field appearance – attracted 38.4 million TV viewers, according to Nielsen figures. Palin, who burst onto the national stage only a week ago as John McCain’s running mate, went toe to toe with Obama: Her prime-time audience was 37.2 million.
And compared to other Democratic Party heavyweights, Palin was the clear winner.
She wiped the floor with vice presidential rival Joe Biden, who managed to reach only 24 million viewers during his speech on Wednesday night of last week – despite sharing the 10 p.m. hour with ratings magnet Bill Clinton.
Palin also outdid Hillary Rodham Clinton, whose call for unity from the Denver stage attracted 25.9 million viewers – about 11 million less than the first-term Alaska governor.
The self-professed pit bull in lipstick took a victory lap around St. Paul yesterday, renewing her attacks on Obama during a Republican Governors Association lunch that marked her first solo appearance since joining the GOP ticket.
“Leading a state means you have to make decisions and not just vote ‘present,’ ” Palin said, referring to Obama’s days in the Illinois State Senate – when he abstained from voting on dozens of initiatives during his eight years in office.
“We don’t have a ‘present’ button as governor – we are expected to lead, we are expected to take action,” said Palin, who was elected governor 2½ years ago.
Obama was quick to push back at Palin for mocking his stint as a community organizer and his legislative record.
“They’ve had a lot to say about me. They haven’t had anything to say about you,” Obama told a crowd of workers at a Pennsylvania factory.
“You haven’t heard a word about how we’re going to deal with any aspect of the economy that is affecting you and your pocket from day to day,” Obama added.
Palin has a compelling story, Obama noted, but “I assume that she wants to be treated the same way that guys want to be treated, which means their records are under scrutiny. I have been through this for 19 months. She has been through it, what, four days so far?”
Hillary Clinton is slated to hit the trail for Obama in Florida on Monday. Sources said the trip was in the works before Palin was picked.
Additional reporting by Carl Campanile in St. Paul and Daphne Retter in Washington
gotis@nypost.com