Rosie O’Donnell has apologized to Wynonna Judd after publicly describing her longtime friend as a supporter of President Donald Trump.
“I was wrong to assume,” O’Donnell wrote in an Oct. 7 Instagram post, according to Entertainment Weekly.
Judd made several appearances on The Rosie O’Donnell Show during the 1990s, and the women have remained friends for many years.
O’Donnell also used the message to encourage followers to catch Judd in concert as the singer promotes her new album, The Hard Truth.
O’Donnell Edited Her Explanation of the Mar-a-Lago Performance
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O’Donnell said she had already apologized privately before addressing the matter on Instagram. She also recalled Judd telling her that she had sung for seven presidents from both major political parties.
The post initially said Judd had performed for Trump. O’Donnell subsequently revised that wording to refer to a performance at Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach, Florida, property.
A representative for Judd told EW that the singer had not performed specifically for Trump. The representative said her presidential performances began with Jimmy Carter and that Trump was not included in that list.
Judd appeared at an America First Policy Institute event at the property in November 2023. The organization shared footage of her singing “Love Is Alive” at the dinner.
Judd Says She and O’Donnell Have Never Discussed Politics
Why Wynonna Judd Is ‘in Shock’ Over Friend Rosie O’Donnell’s Comments About Her Political Beliefs (Exclusive) https://t.co/ciFSCeeY7e
People (@people) October 2, 2026
In an interview with PEOPLE published Oct. 2, Judd said she was shocked to hear how O’Donnell had characterized her beliefs.
“I’ve never spoken to her about politics in my life,” Judd said. “She doesn’t know anything about my stuff. I’m an independent.”
Judd said she generally avoids political discussions and was not angry with her friend. She called the characterization a “complete assumption” and said she did not want the situation to generate more drama when there were already larger problems in the world.
O’Donnell supplied a separate statement for that report, offering an initial, conditional apology: “I apologize if I was wrong.”
The Original Claim Came During a Question About Friendship
During an August appearance on The Tangle with Kyle Ridley, O’Donnell was asked whether she tried to find common ground with people across political divides or had chosen to cut some people out of her life.
She presented Judd as an exception to her difficulty maintaining relationships with people who back Trump. O’Donnell said she loved the singer and that the subject generally stayed out of their conversations.
She pointed to Judd’s difficult upbringing and the loss of her mother, Naomi Judd, while explaining why she set aside the political difference she believed they had.
Judd’s New Album Arrives With More Tour Dates
The record was released Oct. 2 through ANTI- Records. Judd co-wrote nine of its 10 tracks with her husband, Cactus Moser, who also produced the album. It is her first studio album in a decade.
“I feel like this is the most honest and vulnerable I’ve ever been,” Judd told PEOPLE about the album. She described sometimes questioning how much she had revealed, while also feeling ready to tell her story.
Guest performers include Patterson Hood of Drive-By Truckers, The War and Treaty and Iron & Wine. The lead single, “Kentucky Queen,” draws on Judd’s childhood and her relationship with her home state.
The label’s tour schedule lists an Oct. 8 performance at New York’s Bowery Ballroom, followed by Houston’s 713 Music Hall on Oct. 16 and the Choctaw Grand Theater in Durant, Oklahoma, on Oct. 17.