Oprah’s Kamala Harris fundraiser: Does her support swing elections?

Television fable Oprah Winfrey and United States Vice President Kamala Harris shared the signifier connected Thursday successful a fundraising lawsuit for Harris called “Unite for America”. Harris is the Democratic Party’s statesmanlike campaigner for the November election.

This is not the archetypal clip the tv property has voiced enactment for Harris during this election, she made a astonishment code astatine the Democratic National Convention (DNC) past month.

Since emerging arsenic her party’s frontrunner for the statesmanlike nomination, and particularly since winning that nomination, Harris has secured the endorsements of hundreds of salient Americans — from Hollywood stars and euphony icons to her party’s stalwarts and Republicans who accidental they cannot ballot for their party’s nominee, ex-President Donald Trump.

However, fewer nationalist figures successful the US bask an aura similar Oprah’s. Here’s much astir her past of predetermination endorsements and however overmuch those person influenced outcomes.

What was Oprah’s ‘United for America’?

A copper blazer-clad, bespectacled Oprah hosted the more-than-one-hour talk-show-style event.

The lawsuit took spot successful Michigan, a cardinal battleground authorities successful this election. It was livestreamed connected the Harris run YouTube transmission and, arsenic of Friday greeting successful the US, had already been viewed much than 1 cardinal times.

Harris walked onto the stage, gathering enthusiastic applause from a workplace audience. The 2 women discussed topics, including reproductive wellness and Harris’s plans to trim the outgo of lodging and to little taxation.

Big names successful the amusement manufacture — from Jennifer Lopez and Julia Roberts to Chris Rock and Meryl Streep — joined implicit video-link.

These celebrities adhd to the prima powerfulness astir the Harris run built by celebrities including Taylor Swift and Charli XCX, erstwhile they endorsed the Democrat earlier.

However, the astir potent endorsement perchance comes from Oprah herself.

Why is Oprah’s endorsement significant?

A 2013 survey conducted by economists Craig Garthwaite of Northwestern University and Timothy J Moore from the University of Maryland recovered that Oprah’s endorsement resulted successful astir 1 cardinal further votes for Democrat Barack Obama, who has besides endorsed Harris, successful 2008.

The probe recovered that successful summation to votes, her enactment besides helped Obama unafraid further funding.

In the election, Obama won with astir 53 percent of the fashionable vote.

What is Oprah’s way grounds with endorsements?

After her archetypal large endorsement of Obama successful 2008, Oprah has sporadically endorsed politicians successful statesmanlike oregon legislature races.

In 2016, Oprah expressed her enactment for Democrat Hilary Clinton against Republican Donald Trump successful a media interview.

While Trump trailed Clinton successful the 2016 polls, Trump won the election. He won the Electoral College, but lost the wide fashionable vote.

In October 2020, Democrat Joe Biden received a boost from Oprah a period earlier the election, erstwhile she hosted a virtual get-out-the-vote event.

In 2022, the speech amusement big endorsed Democrat John Fetterman successful the Pennsylvania Senate contention against his Republican hostile Mehmet Oz, who roseate to prominence arsenic a personage doc by appearing connected her speech show. Her endorsement took the signifier of a virtual event, conducted connected Zoom.

Fetterman won the race.

But the TV diva’s endorsement is nary aureate ticket. During the aforesaid virtual lawsuit successful which she endorsed Fetterman, she concisely expressed enactment for different Democratic candidates for Senate and politician races. These included: Cheri Beasley for North Carolina, Val Demings for Florida, Mandela Barnes for Wisconsin, Catherine Cortez Masto for Nevada, Beto O’Rourke for Texas and Raphael Warnock and Stacey Abrams for Georgia.

Out of these, lone Cortez Masto won — the remainder were defeated.

Has Oprah supported Trump?

After Oprah endorsed Harris successful her DNC astonishment speech, she received backlash from Trump supporters and a missive she wrote to Trump successful 2000 resurfaced.

Addressing the Republican nominee, she had written backmost then, “Too atrocious we’re not moving for office,” Axios reported. “What a TEAM!”

In a 2023 CBS interview, Oprah clarified, “I mightiness person thought it backmost then. I mightiness person thought it 23 years ago. I’m not reasoning it today.”

In 2015, Trump had besides joked astir Oprah moving arsenic her vice president successful an interrogation with ABC, lone to clarify that helium was joking.