Vance Blames Iran War for GOP Midterm Losses

JD Vance took blame for the Iran war in a lengthy social media post on Wednesday, marking a clear break from President Donald Trump. The message came hours after Republicans lost control of both the House and the Senate in the midterm elections. Vance, who has said he will decide whether to run for president in 2028 after this election, cited the unpopular conflict as a primary reason for the party’s defeat. He wrote, “If you’d like to argue it was worth it, that losing the Senate for the next 6 years was worth it, then do so.”

President Trump defended the war repeatedly during the campaign and again on Wednesday morning. While leading reporters on a tour of a new White House ballroom, Trump stated, “The Iran thing, we had to do and we continue to do it.” He said he spoke with Vance on Wednesday and called the vice president’s post “good” and “fine.” Trump acknowledged he knew the war would impact the midterms but maintained his position on the military action.

Vance has historically advocated for restraint in overseas military intervention. He was quiet during the initial launch of the war this spring and later became a public face for efforts to end the fighting. In an interview this summer, he told Megyn Kelly, “If we transformed the Middle East, this is fundamentally worth it.” This summer, he also criticized members of Israel’s government for opposing Trump’s efforts to resolve the conflict with Iran.

Democrats plan to hold Vance accountable for the conflict despite his previous silence. Rosemary Boeglin, a Democratic National Committee spokeswoman, questioned why Vance did not speak out earlier or resign. She stated, “Vance owns this administration’s failures.” Marc Short, former chief of staff to Mike Pence and a Trump White House advisor, called the election result a repudiation of the last two years. He noted that while Vance retains a large platform as vice president, the loss hurts his potential 2028 presidential bid. Short described Vance’s post as an intentional separation from the president, adding, “You made that bargain when you agreed to be vice president.”

Vance listed several reasons for the Republican loss in his post, including the Iran war, cost of living, and the U.S. relationship with Israel. He also hinted at a shift in immigration enforcement, writing, “I’m open to the idea that we should change enforcement, by focusing more on businesses that hire illegal labor, for instance.” He rejected proposals for amnesty for people living in the country illegally.

An AP Voter Poll of more than 100,000 voters found that about 6 in 10 said the U.S. made the “wrong decision” in taking military action against Iran. However, only about one-third of voters said the war was crucial to their congressional vote. Cost of living and government corruption were cited as leading issues by roughly half of voters. Nearly all voters who supported Democratic House candidates said the war was the wrong decision, while roughly 8 in 10 Republican supporters said it was the right decision.

Vance, a former Marine who served in Iraq, had criticized that conflict in the past. He stated after becoming vice president that a Trump administration would avoid “open-ended conflicts.” He has been a defender of the administration’s immigration policies but appeared to seek distance from the recent backlash against the immigration crackdown. Vance declined to endorse Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for reelection, a move that aligned him less with Trump’s stance.