Vance tries to distance himself from Iran war after GOP’s deep losses in midterm elections

Vance tries to distance himself from.

Key points

• Cost, Associated Press, Josh Boak, Associated Press July 10, 2026.
• Cheatham and Lott advance in HD 70 while Sullivan and Dunn will vie for HD 77.
• Vice President JD Vance is widely projected to consider a 2028 run for president.
• Special elections in Mississippi House Districts 70 and 77 head to runoffs.
• All four Mississippi incumbent Congressmen, three of which are Republicans, won their re-election bids Tuesday night despite a blue wave that swept throughout the U.S.

Vance tries to distance himself from Iran war after GOP's deep losses in midterm elections. By: Michelle L. Cost, Associated Press – November 4, 2026.

Vice President JD Vance speaks to members of the media after the U.S. And Iran held high-level discussions at the Bürgenstock Resort in Obbuergen, near Lucerne, in Switzerland, Monday, June 22, 2026. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP).

Vice President JD Vance is widely projected to consider a 2028 run for president. On Wednesday, he blamed the unpopular Iran conflict for the GOP's drubbing in a lengthy post on social media.

WASHINGTON (AP) – JD Vance publicly broke from President Donald Trump 's defense of the Iran war Wednesday after the Republican Party's deep losses in the midterm elections, attempting to distance himself from voters' clear rebuke of the president as the vice president faces questions regarding his own political ambitions.

Vance, who has remarked he would decide after the election whether to run for president in 2028, issued a lengthy social media post blaming the unpopular conflict with Iran for the GOP's drubbing. Vance remarked, "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."

But arguing that the war was worth it is what Trump repeatedly did on the campaign trail, continued to do in interviews as election results came in and did again Wednesday morning. As he led reporters on an impromptu visit to the ballroom he's constructing at the White House, Trump remarked, "The Iran thing, we had to do and we continue to do it."

When asked concerning the vice president's post, he called it "good" and said, "I know how he feels regarding it, " and "I think it was fine.", trump remarked he spoke to Vance on Wednesday morning and.

He additionally stated he "knew the war was going to impact" the midterm elections but again defended his actions.

Vance, who had long advocated for restraint in U.S. Military intervention overseas, was lukewarm in his defense of the conflict after Trump introduced it and even became the face of an unsuccessful attempt to end the fighting. Voters created it clear they disapproved of the Iran war.

Regarding 6 in 10 voters stated the U.S. Created the "wrong decision" in taking military action against Iran, according to The AP Voter Poll, a survey of more than 100, 000 voters in the United States. Most of those voters dissatisfied with the Iran war backed the Democratic candidate in their U.S. House race, but the survey suggested the Iran war was not the leading matter for most voters.

Only regarding one-third of voters stated the war in Iran was "crucial" to their vote for Congress, well below the roughly half who noted that concerning the cost of living or administration corruption.

Almost all voters who backed the Democratic candidate in their U.S. House race remarked going to war with Iran was the "wrong decision, " while roughly 8 in 10 voters who backed the Republican candidate stated it was the "right decision."

For context, a former Marine who served in Iraq, Vance had been critical of that conflict and remarked after becoming vice president that a Trump administration would not send troops into the "open-ended conflicts" of the past.

After Trump introduced the war with Iran this past spring, Vance was noticeably quiet in speaking concerning it, a conspicuous change for a politician known for being a pugnacious defender of the president.

This summer, he tried to argue the conflict was worth it, telling conservative podcast host Megyn Kelly in an interview that, "If we transformed the Middle East, this is fundamentally worth it." Vance notes reason for loss is 'obvious to almost everyone'.

But after Democrats swept control of both the House and the Senate on Tuesday, defeating GOP candidates even in deep-red areas that Trump carried by wide margins two years ago, Vance remarked in his post that "the real reason we lost is obvious to almost everyone."

He remarked Republican voters cast their ballots for Democrats as of the war, the cost of living, America not being prioritized and the U.S. Relationship with Israel – a dynamic where he's additionally sounded a different note than Trump.

Unlike the president, Vance declined to endorse Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for reelection and this summer publicly chastised members of Israel's administration for opposing Trump's efforts to resolve the war with Iran.

Vance, who has been a staunch defender of the administration's immigration policies, additionally appeared to be seeking some distance from the immigration crackdown that drew a backlash.

"I'm open to the idea that we should change enforcement – by focusing more on businesses that hire illegal labor, for instance, " he wrote.

But he remarked he rejected any politicians who might propose amnesty for residents living in the country illegally. Associated Press Writer Linley Sanders in Washington contributed to this report. Regarding the Author(s). Michelle L. Cost, Associated Press. Elections Frank Corder November 4, 2026.

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For now, vance tries to distance himself from Iran war after GOP’ s deep losses remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.