‘Why Would I Even Talk About It?’: Gwen Stefani Refuses To Say She’s Not A Republican  

In a cover interview for Paper magazine that hit the web Wednesday, Gwen Stefani once again refused to provide an answer to one of Hollywood’s favorite guessing games — what are her political views?

In 2012, the singer was a major fundraiser for Barack Obama’s campaign. But that was before her relationship with country star Blake Shelton. Since then, Stefani has made no further personal political donations and seems to have adopted her fiancé’s policy of keeping her party allegiance to herself.

 “I can see how people would be curious, but I think it’s pretty obvious who I am,” the Voice coach told reporter Kat Gillespie. “I’ve been around forever.”

Stefani then explained that she sees no reason celebs should have to divulge their decisions in the voting booth. “The whole point of voting,” she said, “is you have this personal space to feel how you feel. I use my platform to share my life story and to engage with people and to exchange whatever gift I was giving. I’m not a political science major. I am not that person. Everyone knows that. So why would I even talk about it?”

Stefani also downplayed a feminist reading of her monster 1995 hit, “Just a Girl,” saying, “I don’t even know if I knew what feminist at that time was. I was very sheltered growing up with my family. I wasn’t political. I wasn’t angry.” The No Doubt frontwoman then described a philosophy of personal empowerment that doesn’t rely on group identity. “I don’t need to go on Instagram and say ‘girl power.’ I just need to live and be a good person and leave a trail of greatness behind me. Stop talking about it and stop trying to bully everybody about it. Just do it.”

Shelton similarly declined to jump on the anti-Trump bandwagon in a 2016 interview with Billboard. Rather than following the lead of so many in his industry and condemning the former Apprentice host, he tried to explain why cancel culture and speech suppression led voters in red states like his native Oklahoma to enthusiastically support Trump’s candidacy.

“I’m not going to have the political conversation with you about Trump, or about Hillary Clinton, but I will tell you this: Whether you love him or hate him, he says what he thinks, and he has proven that you don’t always have to be so afraid. A lot of people are pulling for him, no matter how much Hollywood fights it.” He then added, “I see people who don’t like him go and beat up people that do like him. You tell me, who’s crazy here? I probably wish there was another option, but there’s not.”

Shelton’s insights drew the wrath of committed Hollywood leftists like Debra Messing, who begged Stefani to “Please talk to your man to not vote for the person who will STRIP you of your rights.” Messing later apologized for her comments, but only after Shelton clarified that his statement was not meant to be read as an endorsement for any candidate.

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