I want more progressive candidates, even in Red States! Therefore, I will:

[Chathamization]

57. Yes, that’s frustrating. I think part of the answer is that the DFA is OK with endorsing more

Yes, that’s frustrating. I think part of the answer is that the DFA is OK with endorsing more conservative Democrats in conservative states (there website mentions this), even though they tend to be in favor of more progressive candidates in many places. I can’t say I personally buy the idea that Democrats need to be more conservative to win conservative states (though I don’t entirely discount it either), however, many do. Electability, however, is something I do think is pretty important even if it’s hard to gauge. And it can sometimes lead to endorsements of decent but less than ideal candidates.

As for Goyle in particular, he apparently announced his campaign at a DFA meeting, so it wouldn’t surprise me if he had a lot of support from the members there. If there was an active local group pushing for his endorsement, and there wasn’t one pushing for Cheryl’s, it might explain the outcome. Particularly so with a group like the DFA which gives a lot of weight to local groups and often relies on them to inform these decisions.