Iran war cost Republicans votes, Vance says after US defeat

US Vice-President JD Vance blamed the Iran war for his party’s election defeat on Wednesday, 4 November 2026. Democrats won the House and Senate in the US midterm vote a day earlier.

President Donald Trump accepted that the war may have cost Republicans votes, but defended his decision to attack Iran. He said he would take the same course again.

Vance said many people who voted for the Trump-Vance ticket in 2024 had switched to Democrats. He cited a pollster who had spoken to former Trump voters.

According to Vance, they wanted the war to end and more focus on living costs and inflation. They also wanted a change in US ties with Israel and a return to the America First agenda.

Trump said Vance’s view was largely right, CBS News reported. Europa Press quoted Trump as saying fuel prices were probably the main cause of the loss, rather than the war itself.

Trump defended the attacks by saying the US could not let Iran obtain a nuclear weapon. That was his stated reason for the war, which began in late February.

He also ruled out sacking Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, saying he was doing a good job.

A preliminary ABC News poll found that 55% of voters saw government corruption as crucial to their vote. Living costs were a crucial issue for 49%, and the Iran war for 34%.

Trump said he would seek to work with Democrats unless they chose to be destructive. Asked about the next presidential race, he said Vance might not run in 2028 and he did not know who would stand.