Â
Up until recently, the talk of Oprah Winfrey running for president was lumped in with other celebrities, like The Rock, Kanye West, and Mark Cuban, basically, itâs a fun story, but it AINâT GONNA HAPPEN.
Some people think Sunday was a bit of a watershed moment when she delivered that stirring, empowering speech at the Golden GlobesâĻso much so that hashtags like â#Oprah2020â began trending heavily on social media.
Â
So, is it actually possible that she would run? Itâs hard to say, but for the first time, Oprah isnât shutting down the talk. At least not yet. When âBloombergâ asked her backstage if she had any plans to run, she said, âI donât. I donât.â
But then, the âL.A. Timesâ asked her if sheâd think about it, and she said, âOkay.â
Yesterday, CNN said that two anonymous âclose friendsâ of Oprahâs claim sheâs, âactively thinkingâ about it. One of them thinks sheâs been considering it for several months.
Oprahâs longtime partner, Stedman Graham, threw some fuel on the fire, too. He was asked about it, and he said, âItâs up to the people. She would absolutely do it.â
Oprah hasnât really addressed the current hysteria, but just last October, she laughed at the idea, saying, âThere will be no running for office of any kind for me.â Hereâs video. Skip to the 9:30 mark.
Â
Is Oprah Winfrey âActively Thinkingâ About Running for President? | The Bert Show
And last June she told âThe Hollywood Reporter,â âI will never run for public office. Thatâs a pretty definitive thing.â Here are more of her past quotes.
Interestingly enough, way back in 1999, Trump endorsed her as his future running mate. He said, âIf sheâd do it, sheâd be fantastic. Sheâs popular, sheâs brilliant, sheâs a wonderful woman.â
In another ironic twist, Trump once denied interest in running for presidentâĻduring an interview with Oprah back in 1988. He said, âProbably not. I just donât have the inclinationâĻI love what Iâm doing.â Although he said he wouldnât rule it out totally.
Â
Is Oprah Winfrey âActively Thinkingâ About Running for President? | The Bert Show
Still, no matter what you think of President Trump, itâs WAY too early to be talking about the next election, and yet, the biggest thing trending right now is â#Oprah2020.â
So naturally, an Internet gambling company has updated their odds, and theyâre giving Oprah a 20-to-1 chance of becoming our next president.
Thatâs better than other âcelebrityâ options like Dwayne âThe Rockâ Johnson and Facebookâs Mark Zuckerberg, who both have 25-to-1 odds. Former Vice President Joe Biden and Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand are also at 25-to-1.
Oprah would be FAR from a favorite at this point. Democratic Senators Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris are both at 12-to-1 and leading the pack, of course, is the president himself, Donald Trump, at 2-to-1.
For what itâs worth, a different odds-maker is TOTALLY buying the hype, and has cut Oprahâs odds down to 10-to-1 and equal with Biden, current veep Mike Pence, and Senator Warren.
That same site also gives Hillary Clinton 50-1 odds.