In the battle between conservatives Dave Yost and Seth Morgan, there has been a lot of hay from both sides regarding endorsements.
Some matter. Some don’t.
- The ORP endorsement matters. It opens up doors financially, gets your name on the all-important ORP slate card, and makes it a lot easier to effectively manage a campaign.
- County Party endorsements matter little. They don’t bring in cash and County Parties aren’t known for going out of their way to organize grassroots efforts to support their endorsed candidates in competitive races like this one.
- Legislators matter, sorta. Morgan has obtained a small number of State Reps. Yost has scored 16 of 21 State Senators. But like County Parties, this is a bit of a wash since seldom do these endorsements lead to any tangible benefits besides a press release.
- Interest Group Endorsements sometimes matter. For example, Morgan has scored the endorsement of something called the Citizens for Community Values Action PAC. These kinds of endorsements can be helpful if they lead to actual grassroots activities for the candidate.
But it’s the endorsements that can resound with the public at large that can have a real effect on a race.
And Dave Yost scored.
More than 98% of Ohio’s 51 GOP county auditors have endorsed Dave Yost for Auditor of State.
Yost, currently the Delaware County Prosecutor and a former county auditor, said he was humbled by the outpouring of support.
“These are my peers, people I’ve worked with,” Yost said. “To have the county auditors endorse my work – and judge me worthy to be Auditor of State — is hugely encouraging.”
This is the type of endorsement you will see time and time again in paid media leading up to the primary. It highlights Republicans, but most importantly, elected public officials who can speak with authority about what it takes to be an Auditor. That communicates to the average primary voter far more effectively than any statement from a State Senator or interest group.
In conjunction with the messaging efforts from the ORP, this endorsement has the potential to be a dagger to Morgan’s hopes of an upset.
