Jan. 23, 2008
24 Governors Make Their Presidential Picks
Clinton Leads With 10 Endorsements; Some Say Support Of State Leaders No Longer Crucial
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Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius delivers her State of the State address Monday, Jan. 14, 2008 at the Kansas Statehouse in Topeka, Kan. The Democrat has yet to endorse any presidential candidate, and her support as a party powerhouse will be coveted. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
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Among Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton leads with 10 endorsements, including Wednesday's nod from Gov. Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania. She also has support from New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer and Gov. Ted Strickland of Ohio, the state that sealed President Bush's victory in 2004.
A governor's endorsement can be campaign gold since governors have a built-in bully pulpit they can use to promote a candidate and their own grass-roots organizing and fundraising networks to share.
Come the general election, it's natural for governors to support their party's nominee, and voters take it for granted. That makes governors' backing particularly important now, in the primary and caucus stage of the campaign.
"Voters in the primaries and caucuses are trying to make decisions among candidates that they generally prefer, so those choices tend to be harder," said Paul Beck, an Ohio State University political scientist. "There, a governor's endorsement can be useful."
The endorsement game started early. A year ago, seven governors already had announced their support for candidates, including Indiana's Mitch Daniels for John McCain, Missouri's Matt Blunt for Mitt Romney and Illinois' Rod Blagojevich for Barack Obama.
Despite the jockeying for endorsements, governors' backing has probably declined in importance over the years, said David Webber, a political scientist at the University of Missouri-Columbia. That's due in part to a weakening of state political organizations and in part to today's information overload, from blogs to 24-hour news channels.
"People are waiting for (broadcaster) Lou Dobbs to endorse someone," Webber said. "I'm not sure governors have as much clout as they did 25 or 40 years ago."
Obama has five endorsements, including the support of Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, the nation's only black governor and a one-time top official at the Justice Department during the Clinton administration.
On the GOP side, McCain has four endorsements to Romney's three. Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor, has support so far from only one governor, Mike Rounds of South Dakota. Gov. Rick Perry of Texas is the only governor to endorse former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Some prominent endorsements are missing from governors whose states are among the two dozen that hold primary or caucus contests on Feb. 5, when 1,678 of the 2,025 delegates needed to win the Democratic nomination and 1,038 of the 1,191 delegates need to win the Republican nomination are at stake.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger of California, the biggest prize on Feb. 5, has yet to back a candidate, though he's met personally with McCain, Giuliani and Romney and talked to Huckabee by phone.
He recently said he will endorse eventually, but for now is focusing on the state's influence in the primary.
"Now we have power, now they have to come our way," Schwarzenegger said recently. "California is a very powerful state, and for the first time in decades we can now be part of the decision-making process."
One of the most coveted endorsements will come from Kansas' Democratic Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, a party star whose name surfaced four years ago as a possible running mate for John Kerry. She has been contacted multiple times by the top Democratic candidates.
Until recently, Sebelius was holding off until she appoints a new Kansas attorney general. Last week she was tapped to give the Democratic response to Bush's State of the Union address, further delaying her announcement.
Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, a Republican, has also not backed anyone though he is not ruling out an announcement. Florida's primary is Jan. 29.
"Just because a governor says this is who I'm supporting, I don't know that that really means that people are going to follow that guidance," Crist said.
Republican governors held the majority of states in 2000 and 2004, helping propel Bush to the White House. Democrats held the majority when Bill Clinton won election in 1992.
Such party control doesn't always translate to presidential success. Clinton won re-election over Republican Bob Dole in 1996 when GOP governors held a 33-17 edge.
Democratic governors have a 28-22 advantage this year, having regained the majority last year after 12 years of GOP dominance.
Presidential candidates and the governors who have endorsed them:
Republicans:
Rudy Giuliani:
Mike Huckabee:
John McCain:
Mitt Romney:
Democrats:
Hillary Rodham Clinton:
Barack Obama:
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Add a Comment See all 24 Comments
- Well here we go idiots running states that want a woman who has made the statement that she would make oil companies for thier high prices.........wake up america and look and the prices of fuel in New York another Clinton liar in the White House 4 more years of lies.This country needs a real leader willing to make this country what we claim it is...........
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- Rick Perry''s pick doesn''t surprise me one bit. Two peas in a pod right there.
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- Disappointed in Rendell. But then maybe he''s playing for 2012. Knows Hillary will lose to McCain... McCain will self-destruct with the Iraq war still out of control four years later... and Rendell can ride in on his white horse.
OR... we, the people can see for ourselves that this time we are in a big enough mess that needs to be solved NOW and that it will take an extraordinary person to lead us out of it. We are fortunate enough to have such a leader in Barack Obama. If only America can be smart enough to not let him get away. - Reply to this comment
- Yeah, how come he hasn''t been invited back on the Oprah show so they can wave at the audience together!!!
Or did Oprah too just get notice of his connection with the slumlord in south Chicago? - Reply to this comment
- From Newsmax.com
Obama is referring to a debunked chain e-mail circulating widely on the Internet that suggests he is hiding his Islamic roots and may be a terrorist in disguise. It says he was sworn into the Senate on the Quran and turns his back on the flag during the pledge.
There are some truths in the e-mail''''''''s details. Obama''''''''s middle name is Hussein. His father and stepfather were Muslim. And he spent part of his childhood in Indonesia, a largely Muslim country. But he attended secular and Catholic schools, not a radical madrassa.
From Prayman3
Why didn''''''''t Obama tell everyone that he lived in Indonesia where Muslims live. He has something to hide not telling everyone about this. For him to say trust him , this is where I hope everyone who supports him better think twice for him to hide this. What else does he have to hide?????? - Reply to this comment
- FORMER Queensland Premier Peter Beattie will spend the next six months at the University of South Carolina lecturing students on politics and investment etc.
I am just wondering how can you guys trust the governors or any one who has anything to do with politics when they take a man from Australia (Mr Beatie) who has run his own state in Australia, (Queensland)down the drain. Queensland schools, hospitals, mental health, roads, police, education are in one hell of a mess even though Australia has been running through a massive boom time for 12 years, and Queensland has had a boom in its minerals. Even though more money than ever before has been pouring into the state for 12 years from the housing boom but now it is in the process of loosing its rating just because of the way he ran his state when he was premier. How can an American university ask a man like this who is a failure to lecture on politics and economic, it is just a laugh. No matter how good or bad a person is, we all know what the media can do when it is so bias, thus he only got into government because the media wrote the alternative up as stupid, and because of the vote rigging .. When the GST tax system came into Australia the states were supposed to get rid of the Stamp duty which worked out to be about $10.000 per house bought, but they didn''t get rid of it thus giving themselves a river of money, and he still couldn''t make a success of the state it is in a hell of a mess. - Reply to this comment
- If the Clintons do somehow lie and cheat their way back into the whitehouse, how many more interns will Bill rape and molest?
Now that he will be first laddy , old "Slick Willie" is going to have a lot more free time on his hands... - Reply to this comment
- I can see the wing nut crowd is getting nervous more and more each day.
Let me see the c.rap is hitting the fan with the Republicans and all they can worry about is a B.J. Bill got. - Reply to this comment
- Do people in this country love Dynastys/Monarchy?
Clinton, Bush, Bush, Clinton (Hill and Bill) then... later Clinton (Chelsea)
as an independent voter,a woman, a legal immigrant and a citizen for many many years, a professionaland just a simple individual this negativity makes me sick. The attacks, rumors, personal remarks by Bill and Hill on Senator Obama and at times on other i ndividuals, show who they are. the negative campaign brought about by the Billary people _ gives my vote to the Republicans if Senator Obama or other candidate is not nominated. She and her husband had their time and what did they accomplished besides him having *** with an intern, and she learning to be a bitter and agressive woman?
We deserve better.
35 years have passed and nothing was accomplished, now for the next 35 we would like change and opportunity for others.
we do not want: Clinton, Bush, Bush, Clinton (BILLARY) Clinton (CHelsea)
monarchies have been gone for a long time... - Reply to this comment
- I''ll never understand why Hillary did not kick Bill to the curb when good o''l Monica and Bill gave us a new definition for the word "is is". Even if this had been the first is-is, and it was not, my wife would be my X wife and I would be at the curb minus a few body parts. I am sorry that this comment sounds like sleze and bringing up the past, yet it does come into play when Hillary rants about her experience. I guess it is what it is. Bill did take his side of the case to the public forum when he swore to us that " I never had sexual relations with that woman". Now we are asked to accept and/or forget what happened the last time these two were in the W.H.. I can not. Some one somewhere has brought up the phrase "fairy tale". I can see why Bill wants back in. I do not think Hillary wants him in the House of is is.
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Grammy winner Shakira on her music career, philanthropy and being sexy..
