Republicans begin criticizing Trump over election rout

US Vice President JD Vance has commented on the Republican Party’s crushing defeat in the midterm elections, saying that the war with Iran was the main reason for the party’s poor performance, the BBC reports.

Donald Trump also acknowledged on election night that the war with Iran, which he launched in February, had played a role in the Republicans’ defeat.

According to opinion polls, the war is indeed deeply unpopular among the American public, particularly because it has driven up the prices of gasoline, diesel fuel, and other essential goods.

US media reports have suggested that Vance has been less than enthusiastic about the war. He also played an active role in negotiations with Iran. Nevertheless, the vice president and his representatives have consistently stressed that he seeks to remain aligned with the president’s position in his public statements.

JD Vance is widely seen as one of the potential Republican contenders in the 2028 presidential election.

Several politicians and party officials interviewed by BBC correspondents have directly blamed Trump personally for the defeat, some speaking anonymously and others openly.

“He is to blame, and nobody else. Voters have completely, utterly rejected President Trump. This is a first-order political catastrophe. Nobody saw this coming,” Bill Miller, a Republican Party lobbyist in Texas, told the BBC.

“It's been one mistake after another. State after state, people have clearly grown tired of the president's policies,” said Gregg Peppin, a Republican political consultant in Minnesota, criticizing Trump's conduct in the run-up to the election.

According to In Peppin, the party must now change course.

“I sincerely hope we can turn the page on the Trump era, bring in new players, embrace a new agenda, and shift our focus as we move forward,” the political consultant said.