WASHINGTON — Oprah Winfrey is downplaying her interest in a presidential run in a new interview, saying she doesn’t “have the DNA” for a run.
“I’ve always felt very secure and confident with myself in knowing what I could do and what I could not,” Winfrey explained to InStyle Magazine. “And so it’s not something that interests me. I don’t have the DNA for it.”
The interview, however, took place three weeks before the entertainment icon sparked buzz about a potential presidency with her rousing Cecil B. DeMille Award acceptance speech at this year’s Golden Globes. After the speech, two of Winfrey’s close friends told CNN that she was “actively thinking” about running for president. Her longtime partner Stedman Graham and her best friend Gayle
King have also fueled speculation.
It’s unclear if Oprah has had a change of heart in the time between the InStyle interview and her Golden Globes speech. In the interview, Winfrey said she “met with someone the other day who said that they would help (her) with a campaign,” but noted: “That’s not for me.”
Winfrey has shot down questions about potential political aspirations in the past. In January 2017, she told Stephen Colbert that she would “never” run for political office.
However, if the media mogul were to change her mind, she might find success in the 2020 campaign. A new CNN poll has President Donald Trump trailing Winfrey by a 51% to 42% divide in a hypothetical one-on-one match up.
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