Nov. 4, 2022: Inside Oprah's big Senate endorsement

Oprah Winfrey endorsed Democrat John Fetterman  in the ultratight
Pennsylvania Senate race during a virtual GOTV event Thursday night.
More than just another celebrity endorsement, it’s a pointed snub by
Winfrey of Mehmet Oz, the celebrity doctor she single-handedly brought
to national prominence.

"If I lived in Pennsylvania,” she said, “I would've already cast my vote
for John Fetterman, for many reasons.”

The endorsement was in the works for months, our Holly Otterbein
reported late last night: “Fetterman's orbit knew how powerful a nod
from Winfrey would be, and it worked behind the scenes to court her. The
Fettterman campaign made a direct appeal to her for a meeting, according
to a person familiar with the outreach.”

And Steve Shepard shares his penultimate Election Forecast update, with
ratings changes in three Senate, 13 House and four governor races. All
but one are moving toward Republicans. 

The Senate … 

The overall landscape continues to be in “Toss-Up” territory, but
Republicans appear to have a growing upside: With six races now
coin-flips, an even split of those races would be enough to secure a GOP
majority, while a sweep would hand the party 54 seats.

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Raghu Manavalan is the Host of POLITICO's Playbook Daily Briefing.
Jenny Ament is the Executive Producer of POLITICO Audio.

Oprah Winfrey endorsed Democrat John Fetterman  in the ultratight Pennsylvania Senate race during a virtual GOTV event Thursday night. More than just another celebrity endorsement, it’s a pointed snub by Winfrey of Mehmet Oz, the celebrity doctor she single-handedly brought to national prominence.

"If I lived in Pennsylvania,” she said, “I would've already cast my vote for John Fetterman, for many reasons.”

The endorsement was in the works for months, our Holly Otterbein reported late last night: “Fetterman's orbit knew how powerful a nod from Winfrey would be, and it worked behind the scenes to court her. The Fettterman campaign made a direct appeal to her for a meeting, according to a person familiar with the outreach.”

And Steve Shepard shares his penultimate Election Forecast update, with ratings changes in three Senate, 13 House and four governor races. All but one are moving toward Republicans. 

The Senate … 

The overall landscape continues to be in “Toss-Up” territory, but Republicans appear to have a growing upside: With six races now coin-flips, an even split of those races would be enough to secure a GOP majority, while a sweep would hand the party 54 seats.

Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook newsletter

Raghu Manavalan is the Host of POLITICO's Playbook Daily Briefing.
Jenny Ament is the Executive Producer of POLITICO Audio.