Vance Blames Iran War For Gop’s Midterm Losses

Vice President JD Vance blamed Republicans’ sweeping midterm losses on the war with Iran on Wednesday, arguing that voters who backed President Donald Trump in 2024 turned against the Republican Party over the conflict.

“The reason we lost is the war. The president himself said so last night,” Vance wrote in a lengthy social media post.

The remarks represent a striking acknowledgment from the vice president that the administration’s handling of the Iran conflict has become a political liability for Republicans, even as his boss has defended the approach to the war.

Vance also suggested that Republicans who supported the war should concede the political costs rather than look for alternative explanations for the Tuesday results.

“To the people who are pissed off and want to say, ‘I told you so’: you’re right, you did tell us so,” he wrote in his lengthy post. “Take that energy into electing Republicans who share your worldview.”

Vance’s assessment of the GOP wreckage quickly gained praise from some close to Trump. Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, reposted Vance’s autopsy, adding: “Every word of this is .”

When asked about the post Wednesday afternoon, Trump said “I know how [Vance] feels about it. I think it was fine. I thought it was good.”

He did not answer whether he knew Vance was going to make the post.

"I think it's largely true because it drove the gasoline up a little bit short term," Trump said of Vance's claims. "But at the same time, if I had it to do again, I'd have to do it again because long term, it's the only answer."

The vice president argued that Republican turnout was strong Tuesday but that many voters who supported his ticket two years ago instead cast ballots for Democrats.

“Our voters did show up,” Vance wrote. “But the main problem is not turnout. The main problem is that many people who voted for Trump/Vance in 2024 voted for Democrats in 2026.”

Vance pointed to four answers an unnamed trusted pollster gave him about what voters said would win their votes back: ending the war, focusing on cost of living, putting “America First” and changing the U.S. relationship to Israel.

Vance — who was initially one of the least supportive members of the administration on the war in Iran but ultimately took on a public-facing role in negotiating failed peace deals over the summer — said that people might continue to argue about whether the war was a worthwhile price to pay for “losing the Senate for the next 6 years” but that they should start from acknowledging it was, in fact, the reason.

“Argue it was a worthwhile cost to pay. Agree or disagree, that's at least honest,” he wrote. “But everyone knows why we lost. And any honest conversation about where we go from here must start there.”

The president seemed less willing to back down on Iran in a phone call with POLITICO on Tuesday night. Trump said he was hearing that the midterm losses could be related to oil prices driven higher by the conflict, but that he remained “totally convinced” that using military force in Iran was the “absolutely correct” decision.

“And it continues to be,” Trump said.

Trump also didn’t rule out continued strikes after the midterms.

“We're going to take a look,” Trump said Tuesday night. “I think if we see any opportunity to do one thing or another, we're going to do what's best for this country.”

The president did rule out the use of nuclear weapons on the country, speculation that recently made the rounds after being raised by conservative commentator Tucker Carlson, who has sharply criticized the administration’s interventions in Iran and its support of Israel.

In his early analysis of the results, Vance also appeared to anticipate and try to preempt an internal Republican fight over how the party should respond to its losses, particularly on the administration’s hardline immigration stance and use of ICE. “Expect to hear any number of establishment politicians say the solution to our woes is amnesty,” Vance said. “I'm open to the idea that we should change enforcement — by focusing more on businesses that hire illegal labor, for instance. But anyone pushing amnesty is lying to you.”

Vance, who ran for president in 2024 before becoming Trump’s vice president, is a known 2028 presidential contender who Trump openly muses could take up the MAGA mantle.

But both Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the other top contender in Trump’s administration, have been publicly tied to the unpopular war in Iran through their continued roles in negotiations and policy decisions.

The president’s continued support for the war sets up a headwind for the potential candidates in 2028 — a circumstance Vance acknowledged and sought to get ahead of on Wednesday morning with a call to action for voters to join him in turning policy around.

“To the people who are just pissed at the results, you should be. Let’s take that anger and get back to the work of saving our country,” Vance wrote.