I think Palin endorsed her earlier than that because I donated to her more than a week out and only after Palin announced the endorsement on Hannity.
Regardless, your point is valid, it was a very late endorsement and O’Donnell (with earlier TP supporters) deserves the vast majority of the credit.
Palin probably did have polls showing her closing on Castle, but the public polls showing a dead heat only came out a few days before the election, and after the endorsement. Even O’Donnell gives her credit. She raised money (like mine), and her robocall and radio spots probably did help.
While many might be hooting and hollering about how much DeMint or Palin impacted the outcome, I’ve not heard Palin or DeMint say any such thing. I have heard O’Donnell graciously thank them.
I think its called being a team.
Palin's endorsement hit the media late Thursday/early Friday. Four, maybe five full days before the primary. By comparison Palin endorsed Ayotte back in July.