Though Oprah Winfrey has denied in recent months that she’d ever run for president, her longtime boyfriend, Stedman Graham, just revealed she’s “absolutely” interested in a political career!
After Oprah accepted the coveted Cecil B. DeMille honor at the 2018 Golden Globes on Sunday, Jan. 7, Stedman told the LA Times, “It’s up to the people. She would absolutely do it.”
Meryl Streep echoed Stedman’s sentiments after the award show when she told The Washington Post, “[Oprah] launched a rocket tonight. I want her to run for president. I don’t think she had any intention [of declaring]. But now she doesn’t have a choice.”
Interestingly, Oprah herself hinted at a possible presidental run with a cryptic tweet published back in September. At the time, the 63-year-old star retweeted an article written by the NY Post about her taking over for current President Donald Trump in 2020 and wrote, “Thanks for your VOTE of confidence.”
Stedman Graham and Oprah Winfrey at The 75th Annual Golden Globe Awards
However, Oprah stated that she’d never run for political office in an interview on the The Hollywood Reporter’s “Awards Chatter” podcast just a few months earlier.
“I will never run for public office. That’s a pretty definitive thing,” she said. When asked if she thought she could beat Donald Trump if he tried for a second term in 2020, she candidly replied, “I don’t know. I don’t know the answer to that. But I’ll never have to know the answer to that because I will never run for public office.”
Earlier in 2016, she acknowledged that Trump being nominated without military or political experience really had her second-guessing whether or not she was qualified for the job.
“I actually never considered the question, even the possibility. I thought, ‘Oh, gee, I don’t have the experience, I don’t know enough,'” she said. “And now I’m thinking, ‘Oh.'” In the past, Donald has even said that Oprah would be his ideal running mate!
Donald Trump and Oprah Winfrey in 1996.
Oprah has publicly supported Democrats in the past and is good friends with former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle. Following Donald’s inauguration in January 2017, Oprah even went on vacation with the Obamas.
When asked to talk about their trip, she exclaimed, “I can’t talk about it, I can’t talk about it! What happens on the boat, stays on the boat.”
Guess we’ll just have to see if Oprah really decides to run for office!
This story was first published on our sister site Closer.
