John Fetterman Begged Dr. Oz’s Ex-Pal Oprah For Endorsement Behind The Scenes For Months
Nov. 4 2022, Published 12:00 p.m. ET
John Fetterman and his team privately courted Oprah for an endorsement for months before the media mogul agreed, RadarOnline.com has learned.
Sources close to the situation reveal Fetterman had been desperate for the television icon’s support given her longtime pal Dr. Oz is his opponent in the Pennsylvania Senate race.
An insider told Politico that Fetterman’s team reached out for a meeting with Oprah and had been communicating with her for some time. A source said other celebrities had asked Oprah to put her name behind Fetterman in the extremely close race.
“John isn’t one to ask for endorsements,” said his friend Neil Makhija, “But if there was one that is really meaningful, for many reasons — it’s Oprah.”
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, on Thursday, Oprah held A Virtual Voting Conversation where she talked about the importance of voting.
On the call, Oprah said,“If we do not show up to vote, if we do not get fired up at this moment, the people who will be in power will begin making decisions for us.”
She added, “Decisions about how we care for our bodies, how we care for our kids, what books your children can read, who gets protected by the police and who gets targeted.”
Oprah end the call by endorsing Fetterman. She told the people on the call that there were “many reasons” for her decision. Fetterman responded on Twitter writing, “She is a leader on so many issues — fighting for our democracy, passing common-sense gun reform, and ensuring racial justice.”
The mogul’s decision to lend her support to Fetterman comes months after Oz pleaded with Oprah not to talk about the race. In December, he told supporters during a private event that he talked to Oprah asking her to “stay out.”
"I asked her to stay out. 'Don't support me because, if you get involved in any way, you'll get hurt. And I don't want my friends hurt,'" he said.
Oz’s spokesperson Brittany Yanick responded to Oprah’s endorsement. She said, “Doctor Oz loves Oprah and respects the fact that they have different politics. He believes we need more balance and less extremism in Washington.”
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, Oz appears to be taking a slight lead in the polls after questions continue to be raised about Fetterman's health after he suffered a stroke.