Oprah Winfrey hit back at a recent claim made by Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) in a new biography, “Romney: A Reckoning” — namely that she had wanted to run for president in 2020.
The 69-year-old talk show host said through a spokesperson that she “never considered running” for the top office after Romney told the author of the bio that he got a call from the actress (who’s a Democrat) suggesting that they should run together “to save the country,” the Hollywood Reporter reported.
“In November 2019, Ms. Winfrey called Senator Romney to encourage him to run on an Independent ticket,” the spokesperson told the outlet. “She was not calling to be part of the ticket and was never considering running herself.”
Oprah Winfrey Disputes Mitt Romney’s Claim that She Asked to Join Him on a Unity Presidential Ticket https://t.co/K48ZdaKwCI
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) October 17, 2023
The comments came after Axios reported that the author of the book, veteran political journalist McKay Coppins, said Romney told her that he got a call from Winfrey that the two should form a unity ticket to stop former President Donald Trump’s reelection.
Romney told Coppins that he dismissed the idea, believing that their joining forces would ultimately help Trump, the outlet noted.
Despite Winfrey’s recent claims, she has never shied away from politics, even publicly endorsing former President Barack Obama in 2008, the outlet noted.
In October 2019, Winfrey made it clear she wanted to see Disney CEO Bob Iger run for president and said she would go door-to-door to make it happen, following then-former Vice President Joe Biden’s announcement in April 2019 that he would run, as previously reported.
Speaking at the Save the Children Centennial Celebration: Once in a Lifetime gala in Los Angeles, the former TV host presented Iger with the Centennial Award.
While presenting the honor, Winfrey told Iger that she “was hoping that by this time in early fall, I would be knocking on doors in Des Moines, wearing an ‘Iger 2020’ t-shirt. Because I really do believe that Bob Iger’s guidance and decency is exactly what the country needs right now.”
“But since my canvassing Iger strategy doesn’t seem to be in the cards, I’m happy to be here with all of you to honor a man who has devoted himself to actually lifting the spirits of children all over the world,” she added.