Study: Voters Shun Fat Candidates

Voters don’t like fat candidates.

A recent study in the Journal Equality, Diversity and Inclusion found “that a candidate’s chances of winning can be slimmed down because of superficial biases such as weight, ultimately affecting election outcomes.”

That may explain why New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie got lap-band surgery to drastically reduce his weight ahead of a potential presidential run in 2016. The study also found that “obese men and women are less likely” to even get on the ballot. 

According to Mark Roehling, a professor of human resources at Michigan State University, this is the first scientific study “that measures whether heavy-set candidates received a lower share of the vote total compared to their lankier opponents.”

“We found weight had a significant effect on voting behavior,” he said. “Additionally, the greater size disparity between candidates, the greater the vote share of the more slender candidate.”

America is the most obese country in the world.