John Fetterman Gets Oprah’s Endorsement in Pennsylvania Senate Race Days Before Election

Oprah Winfrey attends the Tribeca TV Festival series premiere of "Released" at Cinepolis Chelsea in New York City on Sept. 22, 2017. Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images for Tribeca TV Festival

Celebrity talk show host Oprah Winfrey has announced her support for Democrat Lt. Gov. John Fetterman in the Pennsylvania Senate race over his Republican opponent Dr. Mehmet Oz.

“I said it was up to the citizens of Pennsylvania and of course, but I will tell you all this, if I lived in Pennsylvania, I would have already cast my vote for John Fetterman for many reasons,” Winfrey said during her online event, “A Virtual Voting Conversation,” on Nov. 3.

Winfrey, a Democrat, extended support to other Democrat candidates, including Rep. Val Demings in Florida, Cheri Beasley in North Carolina, Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes in Wisconsin, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto in Nevada, Beto O’Rourke in Texas, and Sen. Raphael Warnock and Stacey Abrams in Georgia.

Her support for Fetterman is noteworthy as she was the person who brought Oz to public prominence as a health expert by inviting him to her show several years ago. Oz eventually began his own talk show in 2009, which was produced by Winfrey’s company, Harpo Productions.

Fetterman’s campaign said Oprah’s endorsement of the Democrat candidate over Oz was a decision that “speaks volumes,” according to the New York Post. Calling the endorsement an “honor and privilege,” Fetterman said he is grateful for her support.

Oz spokeswoman Brittany Yanick said that the GOP contender loves Winfrey and respects the fact that they both follow different politics, according to Politico.

During a meeting in December 2021, Oz had remarked that he did not want Winfrey to be involved in the Pennsylvania Senate race.

Debate, Public Support

In late October, Oz and Fetterman had their first and only debate, during which Fetterman’s recent auditory and speech delays came to the forefront. Since suffering a stroke in May, Fetterman has struggled with verbal communication and auditory processing.

Following the debate, Oz’s support grew. According to a recently published survey by The Hill and Emerson College Polling, Oz was leading Fetterman 48 percent to 46 percent among likely voters.

This is the first time that Oz has surpassed his opponent in the polls. While Oz’s support has risen by 5 percentage points since September, Fetterman’s support has only risen by 1 point.

“Of those who say they have heard, seen, or read a lot about the debate, Oz leads Fetterman 55 percent to 41 percent,” Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College polling, told The Hill.

But among those who have heard, seen, or read only a little or know nothing of the debate, Fetterman was leading 56 percent against Oz’s 28 percent.

Overall Republican chances to win the Senate have also improved.

Richard Baris, director of Big Data Poll, recently told The Epoch Times that the most likely outcome is that the GOP will retake the Senate with at least 52 seats and could exceed its historic cap of 247 seats in the House.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.