Washington Post skips White House endorsement, but liberal tilt still evident in Senate and House nods

The Washington Post editorial board’s decision to decline endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris stunned observers and members of their own staff, but the paper has endorsed Democratic candidates in congressional elections. 

The board has weighed in on Senate and House races in Virginia and Maryland, as well as some primary elections, including in Washington D.C.’s city council Democratic primary. So far, the Post has only endorsed Democrats. 

The editorial board announced on Friday it would not be endorsing either candidate and would be sitting out all future presidential election endorsements. The paper has only endorsed Democratic presidential candidates, except in 1988 when it declined to endorse Democrat Michael Dukakis.

The editors endorsed Democratic candidate Eugene Vindman over Republican Derrick Anderson in Virginia’s seventh district congressional race. In Virginia’s Senate race, the post endorsed Sen. Tim Kaine, arguing his opponent Hung Cao “lacks the temperament and pragmatism to be effective in the Senate”

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The editorial board took issue with Cao’s connection to Trump.

“Mr. Cao has described himself as “MAGA” and part of the “Trump America First camp.” He has compared President Joe Biden to Communist leaders in Vietnam. He pronounced himself ‘thrilled’ about the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade,” the editorial board wrote. 

The editorial board argued that Kaine, who ran as Hillary Clinton’s vice presidential candidate in 2016, “is a seasoned public servant.”

The editorial board also chose to endorse Democrat Angela D. Alsobrooks over former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan in Maryland’s Senate race. 

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“Ms. Alsobrooks would do it better. She has our strong endorsement,” the editors wrote. The editorial board notably endorsed Hogan, an anti-Trump Republican, in his gubernatorial re-election campaign in 2018.

“Yet we’re not convinced his gubernatorial record and party-of-one political brand would add up to effectiveness as a legislator working on behalf of Maryland’s interests. It would help if Mr. Hogan had declared clear policy priorities, but his campaign is all about tone and process — except when he promises to respect reproductive rights, a defensive move forced on him by Ms. Alsobrooks’s unequivocal, and popular, pro-choice stance,” the editors wrote.

The editorial board has criticized Harris for her economic plans and has demanded the vice president answer “legitimate questions” on why she’s done an about-face on some far-left policies from her 2019 run for the presidency. 

However, the editorial board regularly criticizes Trump over his rhetoric, social security, and more. In 2020, the editorial board enthusiastically endorsed President Biden, as they did with Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton in 2016.

Washington Post editor at large Robert Kagan resigned on Friday following the “Democracy Dies in Darkness” paper’s decision not to endorse a candidate in the 2024 presidential election.