Candidates running unflattering photos of their competition in negative ads is nothing new in electoral politics. Heck, even a certain cable network has been found to take certain liberties with the photoshop. However, campaigning hit a new low this season when Jon Corzine put up an ad disparaging Chris Christie for his exceptional girth. The “throwing his weight around” ad has kicked up quite a bit of dust and poses an interesting question. How fat is too fat to get elected?

While we now have a president who is splashed across countless magazine covers, including one where he appears shirtless, the public at large is getting larger and larger. Yet there is increasing expectations on our elected officials to not just have pleasing policy positions, but to be easy on the eyes as well.

In a country where over 64% of the population is either over weight of obese, one would think we would see the opposite trend – a public that votes for heftier and heftier candidates that look just like them. Instead we see the rise of the politicians that look more and more like Hollywood. While New Jerseyans are slim by today’s standards, clocking in with a 22% obesity rate while states like Mississippi sport an eye popping 32%, that still means that one in five of the state’s citizens are tipping the scale. Yet Corzine is doubling down on his calculation that voters will pull the lever for the fittest candidate. Even while editorial pages are calling for an apology, the governor broke out the jogging shorts to run a 5K through the streets of Newark with Mayor Cory Booker.

While unseemly, the ad has been effective, and the fat label is sticking:

But, it appears the message might be working, for now. A new poll from Monmouth University revealed that when voters were asked to say the first thing that came to mind about Christie,ìfatî was one of the most frequent responses. A political analyst told the Times that the ad seems to try to link Christie’s weight with his political ability — subliminally telling voters that he lacks self control.

One would think that overtly mocking one fifth of the state’s population would have consequences, and many political watchers predicted a backlash. Yet, in the past few weeks, Corzine has been making a comeback in the polls, gaining 5 points. Perhaps the lesson to be learned is that voters don’t so much choose a candidate that is most like themselves, but rather most like who they want to be.

(also posted at Gastronomalies)