The 2016 U.S. presidential election has spiraled into an epic tale of an outsider looking to knock over the established leaders of his party and the queen of a family dynasty being challenged by a seasoned Senator with nothing to lose. Whatever the outcome will be, it will never be forgotten, so it’s only fitting we collate the greatest athletes to ever step into politics.
Sports and politics isn’t the ideal marriage. Most people don’t want to deal with politics or political statements when watching a sports program and politicians usually face plant themselves when trying to gain votes by acting like they know sports. Just watch Senator Ted Cruz’s speech in Knightstown, Indiana (where the famous movie Hoosiers was filmed). He referred to the hoop as a basketball “ring” and Twitter exploded. Sure, Obama looks like he’s cool when he makes his picks for March Madness or you see him shooting hoops, but it can still be cringeworthy when it looks too staged.
So, even though most people either prefer one or the other subject, it’s still remarkable how much traction a political candidate can gain if they were a professional athlete. If they had an excellent career in their respective sport, then they definitely have gained followers. All those followers can turn into potential votes, depending on the proximity of where the athlete played and where they’re running for office. They can be the worst candidate ever but having a voting block of sports enthusiasts can propel them into an election victory. Some of the athletes on this list prove this suggestion, however, others have far exceeded their expected limitations in the political realm.
In order to qualify for the list, they had to be a professional athlete at some point or another. Otherwise, President’s Ronald Reagan and Dwight D. Eisenhower would be on this list for their collegiate sports careers. This list is also about the best athletes and not the best politicians. For example, former NFL quarterback, Heath Shuler, cannot make this list because he’s considered a bust in football.
Here’s the top 15 greatest athletes that became politicians.
15. Jon Runyan
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Drafted into the NFL in ’96, Runyan became one of the more physical and aggressive offensive lineman of his generation during his career. A year after he earned All-Pro Honors in ’99, he became the highest paid offensive lineman at that time when the Philadelphia Eagles gave him a six year contract worth $30 million. He started in 192 games which is impressive (health wise) for a lineman. After he retired in ’09, he decided to run for New Jersey’s 3rd congressional district seat in the 2010. He was successful and was re-elected in 2012 but decided not to run again in 2014.
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