The Value of Endorsements

Thu, January 10, 2008 - 9:32 AM

It looks like Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., will endorse Barack Obama later today in Charleston, S.C., skipping over Hillary Clinton and his former running mate, John Edwards.

It's quite a snub to Edwards, though not entirely surprising. The two men, though they shared a ticket in 2004, were not exactly best friends.

The river of endorsements for every candidate flows faster and faster every day now -- from preachers, county commissioners, and more.

How much do these endorsements actually influence voters? In the case of Kerry, at least in a state like South Carolina, one has to imagine not much. He lost this state handily to Edwards in 2004.

But then, even two of South Carolina's best known Republican politicians -- Sen. Lindsey Graham and Sen. Jim DeMint -- have so far been unable to convince voters to back their preferred candidates -- Mitt Romney for DeMint and John McCain for Graham. The latest polls show Mike Huckabee in the lead here.

--Sean Mussenden