Former GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin received a raucous welcome from a police-estimated crowd of 8,000 at a tea party rally in Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s (D) hometown of Searchlight, Nev.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported the crowd chanted, “Run Sarah Run, Run Sarah Run,” followed by shouts of “Sarah, Sarah, Sarah,” as Palin took the stage.

“Thank you Tea Party America!” Palin responded.

The rally was promoted as a chance for conservative activists to send a message to Reid, who is a top GOP target for defeat this year.

The Review-Journal reported that Reid, at an appearance in Las Vegas, said of the crowd assembled in Searchlight, “I’m glad they’re there. That’s what America is all about. It’s a democracy.”

Reid spoke to the media at the opening of the Clark County Shooting Park, saying, “I’m glad they know I live there. We need the business. Searchlight has been struggling like a lot of places in our country.”

Reid supporters put up signs alongside U.S. Highway 95 saying, “Welcome to Reid country,” for passing motorists to see on their way to the anti-Reid Tea Party Express rally site.

The small signs competed with a huge billboard that said, “Will Rogers never met Harry Reid.”

Palin delivered a wide-ranging speech that targeted the mainstream media, “Obamacare,” a growing federal budget and reliance on foreign energy.

She also rejected criticism that she or the tea party activists were inciting violence through their rhetoric.

By telling Americans “it’s not a time to retreat, it’s a time to reload,” Pain said she was “telling people that their arms are their votes.”

“Now media, try to get this right, OK?” she said, adding she was trying to inspire people to get involved.