It's never that simple, of course. If it were, the status quo would be locked in and we'd never oust an incumbent or prevent a sitting vice president from succeeding his boss. But experience matters.
Voters often cite a candidate's credentials as reason for support.
Which explains why office-seekers who lack it seek to minimize its significance. You won't hear them so much as breathe the word. Instead of an opponent's experience, they speak of the record . A record can have flaws, and those flaws can form the basis of a case for change. In Philadelphia's Democratic primary for district attorney, between incumbent Lynne Abraham and challenger Alex Talmadge Jr., the argument over experience is playing a central role - at least for voters who can get past the racial overtones of the contest.