Oprah Winfrey Slammed Over 'Late' Endorsement of John Fetterman

Oprah Winfrey is under fire over her "late" endorsement of John Fetterman in the Pennsylvania Senate race.

The billionaire, 68, made the announcement on Thursday while hosting a virtual conversation on voting.

"If we do not show up to vote, if we do not get fired up in this moment, the people who will be in power will begin making decisions for us," she said. "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.

"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."

In 2021, Winfrey told New York Magazine that it was "up to the residents of Pennsylvania to decide who will represent them."

Following the endorsement, Fetterman, 53, Pennsylvania's lieutenant governor, released a statement.

"It is an honor and privilege to have Oprah's support in this race," he said. "She is a leader on so many issues—fighting for our democracy, passing common-sense gun reform and ensuring racial justice. I'm grateful for Oprah's support and trust on the issues that matter to people across the country and Pennsylvania as we close out this campaign."

The Pennsylvania native later tweeted a photo of himself with an "Oprah's Book Club" watermark and the caption, "#NewProfilePic."

During an appearance on The View on Friday, Fetterman praised the author again.

"She's an icon. It's unbelievable," he said of Winfrey. "It's an honor and I'm so grateful that she understands what's at stake here in this race."

The endorsement is a blow to Fetterman's Republican opponent, Dr. Mehmet Oz, 62. Winfrey was Oz's first guest on his short-lived show Second Opinion With Dr. Oz in the early 2000s, and he went on to become a regular on The Oprah Winfrey Show. In 2009, her company Harpo Productions launched The Dr. Oz Show, which ran for 13 seasons and concluded in January.

With election day on Tuesday, November 8, however, many felt her last-minute announcement came too late.

While tennis star Martina Navratilova, 66, tweeted the news was "better late than too late," Must Love Dogs actor John Cusack, 56, quote tweeted the post, writing: "It's unbelievable—that if she going to endorse at all—it took her this long to be anti-fascist. You know those billionaires—so [misunderstood]."

Meanwhile, Dr. Yoni Freedhoff—associate professor of family medicine at University of Ottawa—posted via his verified account. "Too little too late Oprah. You made that monster," he said to his 66,000 followers.

Fear the Walking Dead actress Mo Collins said: "Late," while retired news anchor Gloria Campos commented: "Geez thanks Oprah it's a little too late. You made him; bringing him down is much harder."

Countless other Twitter users chimed in on the conversation, too.

"Support from Oprah should have happened weeks, if not months ago," one person said. "Finally supporting him five days before the election is nothing."

Another agreed, writing: "Shame on Oprah Winfrey! Too little, way, way, too late."

"Probably too late to impact," someone else said. "Next time check the date
@Oprah."

Newsweek reached out to Winfrey's representative for comment.