For Male Politicians, Dieting Is a Campaign Issue

nytimes.com - Is fat really an electoral issue?

Even before Bridgegate and questions around his conservative credentials began to erode Chris Christie’s poll numbers, his weight was a point of contention in discussions about whether the New Jersey governor would make a credible presidential nominee.

Back in 2012, Barbara Walters asked Mr. Christie whether “you couldn’t be president because you’re too heavy?” And in a Rutgers-Eagleton Poll released in February, 53 percent of New Jersey voters found that he did not have the “right look” to be president — despite the fact that he had lost significant amounts of weight after lap-band surgery in 2013.