Arnold Schwarzenegger may “hate politics more than ever,” and doesn’t “really do endorsements,” but a potential second Donald Trump presidency has the former Republican “governator” speaking out in favor of the Democratic ticket.
In a message posted to X, Schwarzenegger said he would be casting his vote for Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz this week. He warned that another Trump presidency would be “four more years of bulls--t with no results that makes us angrier and angrier, more divided, and more hateful.”
“We need to close the door on this chapter of American history, and I know that former President Trump won’t do that,” Schwarzenegger wrote. “He will divide, he will insult, he will find new ways to be more un-American than he already has been, and we, the people, will get nothing but more anger.
I don’t really do endorsements. I’m not shy about sharing my views, but I hate politics and don’t trust most politicians.
— Arnold (@Schwarzenegger) October 30, 2024
I also understand that people want to hear from me because I am not just a celebrity, I am a former Republican Governor.
My time as Governor taught me to…
“I want to move forward as a country, and even though I have plenty of disagreements with their platform, I think the only way to do that is with Harris and Walz,” he continued. “Vote this week. Turn the page and put this junk behind us.”
Schwarzenegger’s message emphasized his belief in bipartisanship for effective policymaking, calling it crucial in today’s polarized climate. "It requires working with the other side, not insulting them to win your next election," he noted.
One of Schwarzenegger’s biggest motivators in endorsing Harris and Walz: his strong stance against election denialism. The Terminator star said that rejecting legitimate election outcomes is “as un-American as it gets.”
“But a candidate who won’t respect your vote unless it is for him, a candidate who will send his followers to storm the Capitol while he watches with a Diet Coke, a candidate who has shown no ability to work to pass any policy besides a tax cut that helped his donors and other rich people like me but helped no one else, a candidate who thinks Americans who disagree with him are the bigger enemies than China, Russia, or North Korea—that won’t solve our problems,” Schwarzenegger wrote.
The endorsement marks a big shift for the entrepreneur and former GOP governor, who didn’t make an official endorsement in the 2020 race despite his open criticism of the former president.
Trump and Schwarzenegger have a complicated relationship. Schwarzenegger took over The Celebrity Apprentice from Trump in 2017, during which time the series saw a drop in viewership. Trump blamed Schwarzenegger for the ratings, but Schwarzenegger blamed Trump’s polarizing politics and an already declining viewership for the show’s decline.
He ultimately left the show a year later, blaming Trump for bringing “baggage” as an executive producer.
“I loved every second of working with NBC and Mark Burnett. Everyone—from the celebrities to the crew to the marketing department—was a straight 10, and I would absolutely work with all of them again on a show that doesn’t have this baggage,” Schwarzenegger said in a 2018 statement.
Schwarzenegger did not vote for Trump in 2016, announcing it was the first time since he became an American citizen that he didn’t vote for the GOP presidential nominee.
