'Love is Blind' stars say Trump dealbreakers weren't shown

KiMi Robinson, USA TODAYWed, March 4, 2026 at 12:07 AM UTC

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"Love is Blind" brought plenty of conflicts onscreen, yet a lot was left on the cutting-room floor.

Some of the Ohio contestants, while making the media rounds ahead of the Season 10 finale's March 3 release, have shared more intel on what actually happened in the pods while 32 men and women dated each other "sight unseen." According to two women, what was not shown in the episodes were candid political conversations.

Speaking on the show's official podcast "What’s The Reality?" on the Feb. 18 episode, marketing director Keya Kellum – best known for choosing herself over Realtor Kevan Jones after a love triangle – said her "dates dwindled" because she was upfront with her dealbreaker being casting a vote for "this man," supposedly President Donald Trump.

Keya Kellum was a contestant in the Ohio season of "Love is Blind" that aired in February and March 2026.

"Not everything makes the cut, but something I stood really firmly on was my political beliefs. And I had a ton of conversations about that in the pods with men who had opposing beliefs," Keya said. "The framing that it is Republican against Democrat is just so not true. It is all of us against hate. And what I do not stand for is hate.

"Someone who is hateful is definitely not going to be laying in bed next to me, or someone voted for hateful (expletive)" rhetoric.

When asked by host (and "Love is Blind" alumna) AD Smith whether there were "a lot of opposing views," Keya replied: "Absolutely, it's Ohio." (Trump won 55% of Ohioans' votes over Kamala Harris in 2024.)

"I was walking out on dates, actually," she continued. "Everyone's starting their dates with 'What's your favorite color?' I was like, 'So what are your dealbreakers?' I would let them speak, and I would say, 'My dealbreaker is if you voted for this man. So your move.'"

Each season, at least one cast member opens up to their partner – and, by reality TV proxy, the world – about their beliefs on topics such as social issues (see the Minneapolis season's Ben and Sara), reproductive rights (Nancy and Bartise from the Dallas season) and the LGBTQ community (Denver's Nick Amato and Annie Lancaster).

In Season 7, which was released in October 2024, Monica Davis asked fellow Washington, D.C. cast member Stephen Richardson point-blank whether he'd voted in the last presidential election, to which Stephen replied he'd cast his vote for Trump in 2016 and President Joe Biden in 2020.

'Did you vote for Trump?'

Jessica Barrett said she was similarly upfront about her dealbreakers in the pods on the March 2 episode of the "Love To See It" podcast, but "you don't get to see any of" her conversations about politics. (Contestants date in the pods for 10 days, and the footage is edited down to four hourlong episodes.)

"I specifically asked everyone, 'Did you vote for Trump? Are you a Trump supporter?' And I talked ad nauseam about human rights because that is such a pillar of my life," the doctor, who specializes in infectious diseases, said. "I talked a huge amount about human rights in all capacities — abortion, everything."

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Jessica Barrett meets her fiancée Chris Fusco during their reveal on Season 10, Episode 4, of "Love is Blind."

She acknowledged this was "very uncomfortable for some people, which was fine," adding that she finds such discussions are "a great filter. ... Do you care about other people, or do you not?"

Jessica, like Keya, agreed that her political stance and values "took a lot of possibilities off the table." She said, "We're in Ohio; I know that there is a very wide range of beliefs here. I'm lucky to be in Columbus, where there is a lot more [of] a progressive population."

'Out of left field': Bri and Connor on that wild conversation with Jessica's ex, Chris

She also credited the "really kind, respectful, mature conversations with people who maybe feel differently than I did," but noted she always made it clear there wouldn't be a romantic spark without aligning values.

"I tried to make it clear that I was happy to have conversations, but I would not be sleeping next to somebody who didn't feel the same way that I did on these issues," she said.

'I feel very comfortable sharing': Alex from 'Love is Blind' opens up about his Trump comments

USA TODAY reached out to the show's reps for comment.

Voting for Trump became a major part of 'Love is Blind' family meeting

The only time politics was explicitly brought up, at least in the first 11 episodes, was when Ashley Carpenter's dad asked her fiancé, Alex Henderson, whether he voted for Trump in 2024.

"I didn't vote, but I would've voted for Trump," Alex responded. "I'm absolutely conservative though, without a doubt, and I'm happy that he won."

He told USA TODAY he feels "very comfortable sharing" his political stance on a show with a global viewership, but he believed the family dinner was "not the environment or a place to share your political stances realistically, when it's just to see who you are."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Love is Blind' stars say Trump dealbreakers weren't shown on Netflix

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