Republicans reel after midterm losses as blame falls on Trump, Vance and Hegseth

A blue wave and a search for blame

Democrats won enough seats in the 3 November midterms to take control of the House of Representatives and the Senate, a result one account called a 'blue tsunami'. Republican leaders, including President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson, have responded by shifting blame onto colleagues or onto voters. On election night, at 10:37 p.m., Trump posted on Truth Social that he had not been on the ballot and would have won by a landslide had he been. On Wednesday, 4 November, Vice President JD Vance issued a lengthy statement that called the claim that ICE crackdowns had cost Republicans votes 'gaslighting'. He argued the outcome showed that Americans had favored his worldview all along.

“The reason we lost is the war.”

Hawley's one-hour fast draws mockery

Senator Josh Hawley, who was not up for re-election, posted on X on Monday, 9 November, that Christians needed to gather and seek the Lord. He invited people to a fasting and prayer session at the Capitol on Tuesday, 15 December, from 12 to 1. The offer drew sharp replies on social media, where users questioned his Christian values. Hawley had voted for Trump's 'big, beautiful' spending bill, signed in July 2025, which cut taxes while also cutting benefits for recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. More than five million Americans have lost SNAP benefits over the past year following restrictions imposed by that bill. Representative Gwen Moore, a Wisconsin Democrat, replied on X with a pointed rebuke.

“This Senator voted to force children and the elderly to fast involuntarily by cutting food assistance.”

Moore added that for one hour Hawley could see how millions of Americans struggle every day.

Far-right groups see an opening

White nationalist Nick Fuentes urged his followers on X to vote Democrat on Election Day, and that post drew more than 12 million views. Hours later he took credit for the Democratic sweep, calling it the 'Groyper Effect'. In a livestream he argued that the far right should now take over the Republican Party.

“This is why we have to take over the right wing now.”

The Institute for Research and Education on Human Rights tracked 535 candidates in statewide races who were members of at least one far-right Facebook group. Of the 476 races called by Friday, 6 November, 338 of those candidates won, a 71 percent win rate. The vast majority of those races saw Republican incumbents keep their seats.

Candidates tracked535

Races called by 6 November476

Candidates who won338

Candidates tracked

535

Races called by 6 November

476

Candidates who won

338

Data from the article text

Trump's standing and the Iran war

A Guardian column by Moira Donegan argues that Vance's statement reveals his weakness as a potential 2028 candidate, and it notes that Secretary of State Marco Rubio is rumored to have presidential ambitions that year. An Independent column describes Trump as quietly seeking to end the Iran war, which it calls a liability that his own vice president cited as a main reason for the defeats. Trump's approval ratings have slumped sharply, and the same column says his hold on the party is weakening.

Hegseth and the search for scapegoats

Republican Thomas Massie has laid out eight articles of impeachment against Pete Hegseth, who styles himself 'Secretary of War'. If enough House members back the motion, it would trigger a full trial in the Senate. Hegseth said 'We're not worried about that' and claimed that anyone seeking to impeach him was taking issue with the troops. Trump said he would 'stand by' his cabinet appointee and asked, 'Really, what has Hegseth done?' Trump himself is secure until January 2029 barring extraordinary circumstances, since removal would require a two-thirds vote in the Senate. Pressure is building on Trump to fire aides as scapegoats, with Hegseth and Stephen Miller named as likely targets. Miller is the architect of the mass deportations policy that saw Hispanic support swing away from Republicans by more than 25 points nationwide.

What comes next

Democrats take control of Congress in January, and they have two years to hold the president accountable before the next presidential race. Mark Danner, whose book Crossing the Rubicon collects his writing for the New York Review of Books since the 2000 Bush v Gore election, argues that rebuilding should not be the goal. He says systemic problems, some of which need constitutional amendments, make the path very difficult. He also says that Democrats have a very old leadership and that he has little confidence in Chuck Schumer. Schumer, who is 75, seems certain he will be re-elected Senate majority leader despite doubts among progressives elected in the midterms.