The Philly Endorsement Championships

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.

Photo Header: Flickr/Gage Skidmore