Eric Winter, the actor husband of actress Roselyn Sánchez, denied making a social media post in support of President-elect Donald Trump on TikTok on Thursday.
The Rookie star, 48, turned to a fan who flagged the content (it appeared to be Trump’s 1988 appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show) and asked how he ended up there.
The user, adding that a person with access to the account could have accidentally reposted it, asked Winter: “Why would someone hack you just to repost a Trump video?”
The user noted that they made the statement to the actor “with love” amid “dark times” and the frustration of people who had been supporting Vice President Kamala Harris to become the first female president of the United States.
Winter, who has been married to Sanchez, 51, since 2008, said on his X/Twitter account that he “didn’t know it had been reposted” and that there didn’t appear to be any suspicious activity on his social media page.
Eric Winter, 48, an actor and husband of actress Roselyn Sánchez, 51, denied making a social media post in support of President-elect Donald Trump on TikTok on Thursday. The couple was photographed in 2020 in Burbank, California.
Trump photographed in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Wednesday after his victory over Vice President Kamala Harris.
“I’m checking my account and it doesn’t appear to have been hacked,” said Winter, who also appeared in Rosewood, Witches of East End and The Mentalist. “Which means I must have accidentally reposted it after it appeared on my feed.”
Winter, who appeared on 411 episodes of Days of Our Lives between 2002 and 2005, added, “So I apologize to anyone who was offended” and promised that he would “never purposely post a video like that.”
Winter deleted her comments on the aforementioned exchange and returned with a follow-up post clarifying why the pro-Trump content appeared on her page.
“Thank you for informing me about that erroneous post,” Winter said. ‘It was an honest mistake by passing on content that randomly appeared on my page. “It does not reflect my views and I am sorry if I offended anyone.”
Before Winter’s tweets clarified the situation, she received some criticism in response to pro-Trump content appearing on her feed.
One user noted Sánchez’s background (he was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico) and that they are parents to daughters Sebella, 12, and son Dylan, seven.
‘His wife is Puerto Rican,’ the user said. ‘You’re a girl dad. You work on a set full of women of color. And you (most likely) voted against all of them. single. one of them.’
The user added that they expected “nothing less from a privileged American white man,” while another user added, “I wish I could say I never expected this, but he is a (privileged) white (man).”
The Rookie star addressed a fan who flagged the content on his X/Twitter page and asked how it ended up there.
Winter deleted her comments on the aforementioned exchange and returned with a follow-up post clarifying why the pro-Trump content appeared on her page.
Winter and Sánchez, married since 2008, photographed on her Instagram in September.
Another user said: ‘I’m glad this week I found the section of the fandom that are Trump (supporters) so I can block them all. You are all shameful.
Winter received some criticism after clarifying the post on social media, with one user saying: “You have a platform and a huge fan base, use it better instead of staying silent on important issues that affect so many people.”
Another user asked him: ‘So you deny supporting him? You’re a role model to so many people it’s hard not to know where you stand.’
One fan suggested that Winter didn’t strike the right tone in her initial response, saying, “You could have said this in your first tweet and approached fans with compassion.”
Another user said: ‘”It doesn’t reflect my views” would have been a good way to start and perhaps it would also be a good idea to explain your position further.
‘Silence is not a very good option in the world we live in. Especially when you have a platform that (very clearly) circulates fast.”
Some fans gave Winter the benefit of the doubt amid the awkwardness of the situation during the sensitive time period.
“It’s sad that we’ve reached a point where you have to explain yourself,” said one user. “It happens to everyone, so to those who say hateful things to you, I’m sorry.”
Before Winter’s tweets clarified the situation, she received some criticism in response to pro-Trump content appearing on her feed.
Winter received some criticism after clarifying her post, although some came to her defense.
Another added: “I’m sorry you feel like you have to say sorry over and over again for a mistake you really didn’t want to make.” I hope you are well, Eric.
One user recognized how easy it is to accidentally repost content and not realize until hours later.
‘People are quick to think the worst. I just hope this never happens again. I hope you’re well.’
The controversy is not the first for the couple that involves Trump: Sánchez said Entertainment Weekly on July 1, 2015 that Winter “did nothing but support her” after she pulled out of hosting Trump’s Miss USA pageant after he controversially launched his presidential bid two weeks earlier.
In his June 16, 2015 speech announcing his foray into politics, Trump said: “When Mexico sends its people, it doesn’t send the best… it sends people who have a lot of problems, and they bring those problems with us. They bring drugs, they bring crime, they are rapists and some, I suppose, are good people.
Sánchez told the outlet that he “felt horrible” after seeing Trump’s comments at the event: “I felt like (by hosting) I would go against my people.”
Sanchez withdrew from hosting Trump’s Miss USA pageant after he controversially launched his presidential bid in a June 16, 2015 speech at Trump Tower in New York.
She said Winter was also “shocked” by Trump’s comments and helped her draft a statement explaining her departure from the Trump-sponsored event.
Sanchez said: “He read it and said, ‘This is going too far, try this.’ He was very supportive of me, even though he is white and can’t relate to the struggle at all.”
Her statement read: ‘I was very excited and proud to have been invited to participate in Miss USA, but as a Latina, that is now inconceivable. Although I am not Mexican, I am Puerto Rican and a proud Latina. His comments were an insult to our culture. “I will not sponsor anything produced by Donald Trump.”
She added to EW of her exit from the event: “Trump may not be happy about it, but let’s see what happens.”