Leadership 2009 - Week in Review, March 22

With Deb Higgins announcing an endorsement from Andrew Thomson this week, there would figure to be relatively few high-profile figures left to throw their support behind any of the leadership candidates. But let's take a look at where the endorsements of current NDP MLAs, recent cabinet ministers and other key party figures have gone so far - and who might be able to significantly shift momentum as the race continues.

Here's the current set of individual endorsements among current and former MLAs as well as party officials - feel free to mention any I may have missed:

Dwain Lingenfelter: Harry Van Mulligen, Kim Trew, Ron Harper, Trent Wotherspoon, Kevin Yates, Buckley Belanger, Andy Iwanchuk, Judy Junor, Darcy Furber, Doyle Vermette, James Ford (SYND President)

Deb Higgins: Warren McCall, Cam Broten, Frank Quennell, Pat Atkinson, Andrew Thomson

Ryan Meili: Dion Tchorzewski, Peter Prebble, Lon Borgerson

Yens Pedersen: None yet

So who do that leave for possible future endorsements - assuming that the party's former leaders in Blakeney, Romanow and Calvert won't intervene in the race?

Current MLAs: David Forbes, John Nilson, Len Taylor, Sandra Morin

Recent cabinet ministers (2003-present): Eric Cline, Joanne Crofford, Maynard Sonntag, Clay Serby, Graham Addley, Doreen Hamilton, Eldon Lautermilch, Mark Wartman

Recent former MPs (1997-present): John Solomon, Lorne Nystrom, Dick Proctor

Omitted from the above lists due to party switches: Chris Axworthy, Rick Laliberte, Joan Beatty

Other key figures: Janice MacKinnon, Nettie Wiebe, Don Mitchell, Dennis Gruending, Leah Sharpe (SNDW), Angie Merasty (ANDS)

Feel free to speculate in comments as to where (if anywhere) these endorsements are most likely to go; I'll follow up with a few thoughts tomorrow. But on a first glance, it looks like there's a fairly limited number of endorsers left who will carry a particularly high profile - and many of those don't seem all that likely at first glance to pick a side in the race. Which means that one has to expect all the candidates to be working hard to draw anybody they can from these lists into their camp...and that those who succeed may win a particularly strong return for their efforts if there aren't all that many more major endorsements to come.

Update: Corrected list of open MLAs.