Do looks matter in politics?

[gimmethesimplelife]

How much do you believe looks matter in politics?

I ask this as I find Arizona's Kari Lake a stunningly beautiful woman - even as a 100% gay man I can see this - I would hazard to say her looks are part but not of.all her appeal to Conservatives.

What do you think - looks important in politics? More important than policy/experience? Rob

[bae]

Define "important"?

It does seem that "conventionally-attractive" people do better, vote-wise. And there does seem to be evidence indicating that such people do better on some metrics than those of us who look like cave-trolls.



But how much better off are the better looking? Based on the evidence, quite a lot. The first book to seriously measure the advantages of beauty, Beauty Pays demonstrates how society favors the beautiful and how better-looking people experience startling but undeniable benefits in all aspects of life. Noted economist Daniel Hamermesh shows that the attractive are more likely to be employed, work more productively and profitably, receive more substantial pay, obtain loan approvals, negotiate loans with better terms, and have more handsome and highly educated spouses. Hamermesh explains why this happens and what it means for the beautiful—and the not-so-beautiful—among us.


https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691158174/beauty-pays

[catherine]

I agree that since the time when television could help people differentiate between not just policy but the looks of the candidate, looks has taken on a considerably more important role. Most would agree that Kennedy's thick-as-the-switchgrass-at-Hyannis hairdo probably had at least something to do with his beating sourpuss Nixon.

But is it more important than policy/experience? I don't believe so. I hope we haven't devolved to that!

[pinkytoe]

Looks always help but I think personality in general too, ie charisma.

[Teacher Terry]

Totally agree PT!

[ToomuchStuff]

How many people in politics claim to be religious?

[jp1]

How many people in politics claim to be religious?

Most of them. Personally I only believe maybe 10% of them when they claim it. Jimmy Carter, yes. Fellow Georgian Hershel Walker? You gotta be a stupid f’ing moron to believe there’s a religious bone anywhere in his body other than perhaps the bone that has impregnated so many people so many times.

[Rogar]

I tried to picture Bernie with a pompadour and it wasn't working. I don't know where he would fall on the attractiveness scale, but his bulldog rhetoric seemed to match his looks. He did pretty well considering he's not exactly dapper, but then again he lost his presidential bid.

[LDAHL]

I think in Lake’s case, it’s not so much a question of looks as it is media skills. There may be something to the old saw that politics is show business for unattractive people. If Lake were less good looking I think she would still be doing fairly well against Hobbs.