Recent news is littered with the presidential candidate endorsements of celebrities, newspapers, and other politicians. Katy Perry is famously (and nakedly) behind Hillary Clinton. On Sunday, Lebron James endorsed Hillary, too. Endorsements like these probably won’t decide the election, but they are impactful on the electorate nonetheless because they drive voter turnout and do change many voters’ minds about the candidates.
USA Today had never endorsed a presidential candidate before last week, when the paper endorsed Hillary Clinton. The endorsement piece railed against Donald Trump, which made for an odd scene when guests in Trump Hotels woke up to read the takedown in the USA Today copies placed outside their hotel room doors.
The New York Times and President Obama have both endorsed Clinton, in an entirely predictable turn of events. Neither endorsement likely changed anyone’s mind, though President Obama’s might have motivated some reticent Bernie fans into showing up at the polls next month. President Obama also attracts huge crowds to Clinton rallies. If Clinton did not have President Obama’s endorsement, it would be seen as a slight — a vote of no confidence, made doubly worse by the fact that it was coming from her former boss.
During the first presidential debate, Donald Trump touted the endorsement of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, a federal agency that handles deportations. ICE did not endorse him — and it cannot endorse a candidate, because as a federal agency, to make an endorsement would violate the Hatch Act.
Trump does, however, have the very real endorsement of 88 retired generals and admirals. Because Trump has no military background, these endorsements demonstrate that many military leaders see him as a credible commander in chief.
In fact, it was the early endorsements of Sarah Palin and Senator Jeff Sessions that gave Donald Trump legitimacy as a candidate. Without the well-known politicians lining up behind him, Trump’s campaign might have looked more like a publicity stunt than a serious effort to win the White House. Jerry Falwell’s endorsement of Trump made him an acceptable candidate in the eyes of many evangelicals.
Celebrity endorsements have an entirely different function. Katy Perry’s endorsement does not say anything about Hillary Clinton, but it does get Katy Perry fans to care about who Hillary is and what she stands for. A politician telling people to go vote sounds like a lecture. But when Katy Perry does it, voting sounds fun and cool and something you can do while covered in glitter.
Hillary Clinton is receiving “crossover” endorsements, from newspapers that have traditionally endorsed Republicans. She also has the endorsement of over 40 GOP officeholders who are scattered across the country. This gives anti-Trump Republicans a way to support her without feeling like they’re betraying the party (although they’ll be voting against it).
An endorsement on its own will likely not change any voters’ minds, but the endorsement of famous people or institutions can lend credibility and generate interest for a candidate. Endorsers might get those “maybe voters” to show up at the polls — and could sway undecided voters in either direction.
