Trump Says Iran War Was ‘a Part’ of GOP Midterm Losses, but Insists He Would Do It Again
The president tied his party's defeat partly to the Iran war and high gas prices, while saying he has no regrets and will veto bills he rejects.
President Donald Trump acknowledged on Tuesday that the war with Iran played a role in his party’s sweeping losses in the 2026 midterm elections, while making clear he does not regret the decision to go to war.
What the president said
In an interview with Fox News, Trump said of the results, “I think a part of it was Iran.” He added that voters may have supported his Iran policy but were not willing to accept the short-term cost of paying more for gasoline, according to the BBC’s account of the interview.
In a separate interview with The Wall Street Journal, Trump described the war as one piece of the defeat and pointed to surging fuel prices as the larger political burden. He told the newspaper he did the right thing and would have done it again, according to the Journal and The Hill.
Gas prices hung over the race
The national average price of gasoline stood at about $4.14 a gallon on Election Day, roughly 38 percent higher than when the conflict began in late February, ABC News reported, citing AAA data.
Voters noticed. The NBC News exit poll found that nearly nine in ten voters were concerned about grocery costs and gas prices, and a majority said military action against Iran was the wrong decision.
Accepting the results, with a warning
Trump told the Journal he would accept the outcome and was willing to work with Democrats, who won control of both the House and the Senate. He also warned that he would veto Democratic legislation he considers unacceptable.
That sets up a familiar dynamic for a president facing a divided government. Democrats will control what bills reach his desk, but they are far short of the two-thirds majorities in both chambers needed to override a veto.
Reaction abroad
The comments drew attention in Tehran. Iran’s parliament speaker and chief negotiator, Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf, wrote on social media that Americans had said no to war, the BBC reported. Iran’s supreme leader said in a statement that he did not expect US policy toward Iran to change.
What comes next
Indirect talks mediated by Qatar have been stalled for months, and Trump has said the conflict will end when he says it ends, according to CBS News. The new Congress, sworn in in January, is expected to press the administration on war costs and energy prices through hearings and the budget process.
For now, the president’s own words have given Democrats a ready explanation for the election: a war that voters felt at the pump.
How we reported this
This report is based on information confirmed by the Associated Press or by at least two major news organizations, as noted in the text. Claims that have not been independently verified are identified as such. BURN VOC will update this story as new information is released.
