In case you missed today’s Political Insider, the Palm Springs Police Officers’ Association endorsed Mayor Steve Pougnet and council challenger Paul Lewin in this November’s council elections.

The endorsement is likely to surprise people who have followed the city’s politics.

Consider this:

1. The association chose to endorse only one person in the council race – newcomer Lewin – even though two seats are up for grabs.

2. Both incumbents – Mayor Pro Tem Lee Weigel (a former police chief) and Councilman Rick Hutcheson – had earned the police association’s endorsement in 2007 but didn’t get it this time. Ironically, the elected leaders’ photos still grace the political action section of the association’s website.

3. The police officers’ association supported Pougnet in 2007. But it is certainly notable that he was able to retain that endorsement, even though the 2010 budget forced city officials to shutter the jail, close a fire station and make other cuts to public safety.