It's less common outside of a person, certainly, but I've heard it in the context of other things, i.e., "I'm pulling for the home team!". While I'm not sure I've heard it in the context of an ideal, I have in the context of a debate, though that, like the other uses, still involves people and a kind of competition (i.e., "I'm pulling for the affirmative"), which aligns it pretty well with design decisions.
It's less common outside of a person, certainly, but I've heard it in the context of other things, i.e., "I'm pulling for the home team!". While I'm not sure I've heard it in the context of an ideal, I have in the context of a debate, though that, like the other uses, still involves people and a kind of competition (i.e., "I'm pulling for the affirmative"), which aligns it pretty well with design decisions.