The Des Moines Register won't endorse a presidential candidate

State of play: Gannett publications still have the discretion to endorse candidates in state or local elections, according to a statement from the company to Axios.

• The Des Moines Register published an endorsement for Democrat John Forbes for Polk County Supervisor on Monday.

Flashback: Presidential endorsements are magnets for criticism but valuable in helping focus attention on issues important to Iowans, Lucas Grundmeier, the Register's opinion editor, wrote in 2020 when the paper endorsed President Biden.

• The Register announced in 2022 that it was focusing its endorsements on state and county candidates or issues but did not specify how it would approach the presidential race.

The big picture: A growing list of newspapers now see endorsements as more likely to anger subscribers and undermine trust in the media.

• The Star Tribune, LA Times and hundreds of other publications have also ended or limited election endorsements.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to include the Register's 2022 announcement that editorials would focus on state and county candidates.