Presidential endorsements can be a great boon to political candidates who are competing in a place where the commander-in-chief is popular and who perhaps need a little boost to get over the finish line. 

Neither of those criteria particularly apply, though, to President Donald Trump's latest nod. 

Hours before polls close in Nevada, Trump tweeted his support for state attorney general Adam Laxalt, who is far and away the frontrunner to win the gubernatorial nomination for the GOP. 

Not only does he not really need the boost — it could come back to haunt him. Trump had a net negative approval rating in the state as of last month. Hillary Clinton won Nevada by two points in 2016, and Barack Obama bested Mitt Romney by six. 

And, as longtime Nevada political reporter Jon Ralston says, Laxalt rarely mentions Trump at all.