Key takeaways:
- Democrats won control of both the House and Senate in the U.S. midterm elections.
- Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Ghalibaf said American voters had said “NO TO WAR.”
- China and Japan emphasized continuity in their relations with the United States despite the election results.
Democrats’ capture of both chambers of Congress sent governments around the world weighing what the U.S. midterm elections could mean for wars, trade and relations with President Donald Trump. Iran’s chief negotiator called the result a rejection of war. U.S. allies, meanwhile, stressed that their ties with Washington would continue.
Trump acknowledged that the U.S.-Israel war on Iran likely hurt Republicans, saying voters were probably not ready “for the short-term consequence of the price of gasoline,” Al Jazeera reported. The conflict has dragged on and driven up oil prices.
“Americans said NO TO WAR, and we endorse this message,” Iranian parliament speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Baqer Ghalibaf wrote on X. He warned that if the U.S. government disregarded voters’ wishes, “our NO comes with a Nightmare.” Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said a change in party control in Washington would not end what he called U.S. “hostility” toward Tehran, according to Al Jazeera.
In Israel, the vote came after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a Trump ally, lost his parliamentary majority in elections last week. Israeli opposition figure Yair Golan said the U.S. results showed “just how toxic Netanyahu has become” among Democrats and Republicans. Opposition leader Yair Lapid said they ruled out “any possibility of a unity government led by Netanyahu.” Neither outlet reported an immediate response from Netanyahu.
Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Democratic leaders held a strongly negative view of Moscow but indicated that Russia would not change its foreign policy because of the vote. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow hoped the results would not affect Trump’s “peacemaking efforts,” Al Jazeera reported.
European leaders offered differing assessments. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Americans had voted against policies that “only impoverish,” as well as hate, sexism, climate denialism and privileges for elites. European Parliament Vice President Christel Schaldemose said she was “cautiously optimistic” that the result could help support for Ukraine, the green transition and international relations, while urging the EU to remain capable of standing on its own, according to Al Jazeera.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius congratulated Democrats on a “historic victory” and said Berlin would work with both parties, NPR reported. Norway’s Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere called the result a “powerful political signal” from American voters. French Finance Minister Roland Lescure said France would watch whether Trump changed course, Al Jazeera reported.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said “the people of America have spoken” and expressed hope for improved bilateral relations. China called the election a U.S. domestic affair and said it wanted to maintain communication and cooperation. Japan said its alliance with the United States remained the cornerstone of its foreign and security policy.
The results also drew sharply different headlines abroad. NPR reported that Ukraine’s Kyiv Independent called the outcome a potential boost for Ukraine, while Russia’s state-run Rossiyskaya Gazeta suggested Europe and Ukraine could suffer if Trump responded angrily to the Republican defeat.
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