How Trump’s ‘little detour’ to Iran became a roadblock in the US midterm elections

The Iran war, now in its eighth month, has become a political liability for President Donald Trump and Republican candidates in the US midterm elections, as rising gas prices and voter fatigue weigh on the party's push to retain control of Congress. Trump has downplayed the conflict's economic impact, calling it a 'little detour.'

The Iran war, now in its eighth month, has become a political liability for President Donald Trump and Republican candidates in the US midterm elections, according to an Associated Press analysis. Trump, who promised during his 2024 campaign to avoid foreign wars, has described the conflict as a 'little detour.' Rising gasoline and diesel prices, driven by the war, are weighing on voters in conservative states like Ohio, Iowa, Kansas, and Texas, where Republican incumbents face competitive races. An AP-NORC poll found that voters from both parties want the next Congress to focus on making life more affordable and ending the war. The conflict has spread: Iran-backed Houthi rebels have attacked Saudi oil infrastructure, and the State Department reduced staffing at four US embassies in the Middle East over intelligence of Iranian threats to American personnel. Trump has downplayed the economic impact, telling a Michigan rally that gas prices are 'a small price to pay for taking a nuclear weapon away from maniacs.' The article quotes a Republican-leaning voter in Ohio who said he voted for Democrats this year out of frustration that Republicans are not holding Trump accountable.