The Philly Endorsement Championships

Who saw their influence win or lose on election day?

The Philly Endorsement Championships

Who saw their influence win or lose on election day?

Every election, politicians, for-profit newspapers, and special interest groups trot out their endorsements of candidates who are on the ballot. These endorsements seem to mean a great deal to candidates; they’re often displayed prominently on their website, and some are pursued at great financial cost to the campaign. The thinking is that each endorsement increases a candidate’s odds of winning.

But does it? If endorsements are worth so much, then the candidates who receive the endorsements should win most of the time. But based on this election’s results, endorsements don’t seem to have much of an influence. Of the biggest influencers on the list below, their endorsements won 25 times and lost 20 times; not exactly a stellar record.

Our surprise gold medalist is Governor Tom Wolf, who picked all six of his races correctly, even dipping down into some lower-level state rep races. Silver, perhaps unsurprisingly, goes to former Governor Ed Rendell. He went 4-0, nailing all of his endorsements while aiming for only the top-level races. The bronze medal goes to Council President Darrell Clarke; he only endorsed two candidates, but he hit on them both. Other notes: The Inquirer and Daily News were decidedly mediocre, and the poor Tribune brought up the rear with a dismal 1-5 mark, with only Josh Shapiro avoiding their kiss of death.

Tom Wolf
6-0
Wins
Hillary Clinton
Katie McGinty
Josh Shapiro
Dwight Evans
Brian Sims
Michael O’Brien
Losses

Ed Rendell
4-0
Wins
Hillary Clinton
Katie McGinty
Josh Shapiro
Dwight Evans
Losses

Darrell Clarke
2-0
Wins
Katie McGinty
Josh Shapiro
Losses

Mayor Jim Kenney
3-2
Wins
Hillary Clinton
Brian Sims
Michael O’Brien
Losses
Stephen Zappala
Kevin Boyle

Philadelphia Daily News
3-2
Wins
Hillary Clinton
Dwight Evans
Katie McGinty
Losses
John Kasich
Stephen Zappala

Philadelphia Inquirer
3-4
Wins
Hillary Clinton
Josh Shapiro
John Rafferty
Losses
John Kasich
Joe Sestak
Dan Muroff
Kevin Boyle

Democratic City Committee
2-3
Wins
Katie McGinty
Jared Solomon
Losses
Chaka Fattah
Ben Waxman
Stephen Zappala

Philadelphia Federation of Teachers (PFT)
1-2
Wins
Katie McGinty
Losses
Chaka Fattah
Ben Waxman

IBEW Local 98 (Johnny Doc’s shop)
1-2
Wins
Katie McGinty
Losses
Stephen Zappala
Kevin Boyle

Philadelphia Tribune
1-5
Wins
Josh Shapiro
Losses
Bernie Sanders
John Kasich
Joe Sestak
Chaka Fattah
Mark Cohen

Photo Header: Flickr/Gage Skidmore

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