CAMPAIGN 2004 Gephardt leads Dems in support

One Ohio representative has endorsed Gephardt for president.
By VALENTIA PETROVA
and CHARLIE OLSEN
STATES NEWS SERVICE
WASHINGTON -- If it were up to the U.S. Congress to pick the Democratic nominee for president, Rep. Richard A. Gephardt, D-Mo., would have a wide -- but not insurmountable -- lead.
While much of the Congress remains uncommitted, Gephardt has secured 31 congressional endorsements, including 28 that are out of his home state.
Sen. John F. Kerry, D-Mass., is the runner up with 16 endorsements total, but just five from out of the Bay State. Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman, D-Conn., has 12 endorsements, including nine from out-of-state.
Sens. Bob Graham, D-Fla., and John Edwards, D-N.C., each have seven congressional endorsements. Ex-Gov. Howard Dean, D-Vt., has four congressional endorsements and the Rev. Al Sharpton of New York has two, both from New York representatives.
From the Ohio delegation, only Rep. Sherrod Brown has endorsed a presidential candidate -- Gephardt.
While endorsements are not a measure of success, they may be considered indicative of how widespread the candidate's credibility is in political circles.
About endorsements
Stephen Wayne, Georgetown University government professor, said endorsements help with important factors in a presidential campaign such as fund raising, advertising and encouraging broader press coverage.
Steven Craig, a professor of political science at the University of Florida in Gainesville, said endorsements "don't carry the weight they used to, back when these people [senators and representatives] used to decide who it was who got nominated. In terms of their motivations, when they make endorsements their principle calculation is: 'Here is a guy who has a chance to win, and I want to be seen as having been an early supporter.'"
Not a big factor
Former Rep. Dan Glickman, D-Kan., now the director of the Institute of Politics at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, agreed that endorsements are not a "monumental factor" in a presidential campaign.
This year, Gephardt's Democrat-leading list is laden with big names -- some of them beneficiaries of Gephardt's withdrawal from the House Minority Leader's post. His supporters include the new minority leader, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Rep. Steny B. Hoyer, D-Md., the new minority whip.
Brown said he endorsed Gephardt because he agrees with his vision for economic development, Medicare, jobs and prescription drugs.