The 2024 presidential election season is underway. President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are the presumptive nominees for their respective parties.
There has been wishful thinking among some Democrats that former First Lady Michelle Obama would run in 2024, taking Biden’s place. TikTok videos with millions of views claim Biden has competition from former First Lady Michelle Obama on the Democratic ticket.
TikTok user PoliticalProwess has posted dozens of video clips appearing to show Obama making statements about the presidency. One video with a text overlay reads: “POV: Michelle Obama announces shes running for president in 2024.”
Another video from the same TikToker has text on screen that says “When u find out Michelle Obama is replacing Joe Biden in 2024 election.”
THE QUESTION
Is Michelle Obama running for president in 2024?
THE SOURCES
- Statements from Michelle Obama’s office to various news outlets
- Video of Michelle Obama at the 2016 Democratic National Convention
- InVid and RevEye, video forensics tools
THE ANSWER
WHAT WE FOUND
Michelle Obama is not running for president. Crystal Carson, director of communications for the first lady, told NBC News in early March: “As former First Lady Michelle Obama has expressed several times over the years, she will not be running for president. Mrs. Obama supports President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’ re-election campaign.”
During a conversation with Oprah Winfrey in December 2022, Obama said she has no plans to ever run for president.
In one of the viral TikTok videos with the text on screen that claims she's running, the video comes from remarks Obama made at the 2016 Democratic National Convention.
In the viral TikTok video, Michelle Obama can be heard saying: “I want a president with a record of public service. Someone whose life’s work shows our children that we don’t chase fame and fortune for ourselves. We fight to give everyone a chance to succeed and we give back even when we’re struggling ourselves because we know there is always someone worse off, and there but for the grace of God go I.”
At that event, she was speaking about Hillary Clinton, not making any announcement about running for president. She also didn't mention running for president herself during the 2016 speech.
Another video posted by the TikTok account PoliticalProwess appears to show an advertisement featuring a fake voiceover from former President Barack Obama encouraging people to buy Michelle Obama merchandise. Some of the campaign slogans on the apparel suggest California Gov. Gavin Newsom would be on the former first lady’s ticket. Newsom has also not made any announcement about a 2024 presidential run of any kind.
The merchandise page advertised is not connected to any formal campaign account and the contact information on the merchandise website directs to a location in Estonia.
VERIFY reached out to the office of Barack and Michelle Obama for comment but did not hear back at the time of publication.
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