The support of the outlawed group was the kiss of death to the candidate.
Origin
1945-50
British Dictionary definitions for kiss of death
kiss of death
noun
1.
an act or relationship that has fatal or disastrous consequences
Word Origin
from Judas' kiss that betrayed Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:44–45)
Slang definitions & phrases for kiss of death
kiss of death
noun phrase
The reason something will end or die; something causing ruin: Interviewing with them could be the kiss of death
Idioms and Phrases with kiss of death
kiss of death
An action or relationship that is ultimately ruinous. For example, Some regard a royal divorce as a kiss of death to the monarchy. This term alludes to the betrayal of Jesus by Judas Iscariot, who kissed him as a way of identifying him to the soldiers who came to arrest him (Matthew 26: 47–49). It dates only from about 1940 but was previously called a Judas kiss.