Washington — Republicans Blame Trump for Midterm Losses

Republicans are blaming President Donald Trump for the party's loss of Congress in Tuesday's midterm elections, according to interviews the BBC conducted with a dozen party operatives, campaign officials and White House allies.

How many seats did Republicans lose?

According to the BBC's results tracker, Democrats had won control of the Senate with 54 seats to Republicans' 44, a gain of seven seats, with 33 of 35 contested seats counted. In the House, Democrats had 228 seats to Republicans' 139, a gain of 25 seats, with 367 of 435 seats counted at the time of the BBC's report. The BBC reported upset Democratic wins in Texas, Kansas and South Carolina — states the party does not typically carry.

Who is blaming Trump, and what are they saying?

Bill Miller, a Republican lobbyist in Texas, told the BBC the losses are a direct repudiation of the president.

"It's on him. It's not on anybody else. It's a total, complete rejection of President Trump. This is a disaster of the first magnitude. Nobody saw it coming like this."

Gregg Peppin, a Republican strategist in Minnesota, told the BBC the campaign unraveled over time: "It was just one mistake after another. Clearly, in state after state, people did not like the president's policies."

What policies are Republicans pointing to?

A White House ally, speaking to the BBC on background, said public disapproval of the administration's handling of the Iran war, tariffs and the immigration crackdown combined into what the person called a "perfect storm" heading into November. The same ally said "there's palpable frustration [within] the party about how this has all played out" and that anger directed at Trump "is extremely high," per the BBC.

The BBC reported that most Republicans had expected to lose the House and knew holding the Senate would be difficult in a midterm cycle that historically favors the party out of power. The operatives who spoke to the BBC said the scale of the defeat, not the fact of it, is what has fueled the anger — pointing specifically to Trump's attention to legacy-building projects in Washington over voter concerns.

How does this compare with the 2022 midterms?

The BBC noted that in 2022, under then-President Joe Biden, Democrats lost just nine House seats and gained one Senate seat — a result Republicans had hoped to replicate this cycle to build momentum toward 2028. Tuesday's results fell well short of that benchmark, according to the BBC's reporting.

What other races flipped on election night?

Beyond the congressional map, Democrats also picked up governor's mansions in Texas, Georgia and Ohio, according to HTT News. In New Jersey's 12th District, Democrat Hamawy became the first Muslim elected to Congress from that seat, HTT News reported.

The BBC said its account draws on interviews with a dozen Republican operatives, campaign officials and White House allies, many of whom spoke on background to give a candid assessment of Trump's approach to the midterms.