Is Postrel right on this point?

Postrel whose recent book is entitled, The Substance of Style wonders about physical attractiveness as a factor in electoral success. Excerpt:

My take on politicians' looks: Male politicians have to be good looking. Female politicians just have to be polished--in control of their appearance. I can't think of any female politicians as classically pretty as Perry is handsome. Nobody would take them seriously.

I suppose she might have a point because politicians must garner the support of a large number of people on the basis of limited impressions. In most professions where the "audience" is much smaller and contact more sustained, good looks though always a factor (human beings are human beings afterall) might not be so determinative as routine contact with each other diminishes the power of the "first impression" of good looks and the appreciation of competence grows over time. What do you readers think?