Midterm Rout Is “Dissatisfaction With Trump,” Says Indian-American Congressman Thanedar

Indian-American Congressman Shri Thanedar said the Republican losses in the 2026 US midterms were a verdict on President Donald Trump, not a vote for the Democratic Party.

Thanedar, a Democrat who represents Michigan’s 13th Congressional District, told ANI that voters were reacting to rising living costs, the war with Iran, tariffs and what he called corruption in the administration. “I don’t see this as support for the Democratic Party. This I see as dissatisfaction with Trump. This is really on Trump,” he said.

“A REFERENDUM ON TRUMP”

Trump, he argued, was effectively on the ballot. “It was his policies; it was his tariffs. It was his Iran war. That is what is central to this election,” Thanedar said. “This is a referendum on Trump’s failure in managing the economy, Trump’s failure in international relationships, and Trump’s actions.”

THE AFFORDABILITY CRISIS

He said voters had told the government that their lives have become unaffordable. “America has an affordability crisis,” he said. “Prices of gasoline, prices of diesel, prices of fertilizers, food costs, and healthcare cost, they’re all skyrocketing.”

WAR, TARIFFS AND CORRUPTION

Thanedar accused the President of acting beyond his authority. “This President is engaged in an illegal war with Iran,” he said. “This President has taken tariff powers in his own hands, and he has disregarded the authority of the Congress.” He also alleged that the President’s family had profited, saying it “has benefited to the tune of billions of dollars” and that the corruption was “unprecedented.”

“BUYER’S REMORSE”

The message, he said, did not come from Democrats and independents alone. “The people who voted him into power are now having buyer’s remorse, and they are unhappy with him,” Thanedar said. “The red states are hurting as much as the blue states. The Republicans are hurting as much as the Democrats.”

WHAT THE WAVE MEANS

US networks have projected that Democrats won both the House and the Senate. A Democratic House can step up oversight through investigations, hearings and subpoenas, and a Democratic Senate gives the party more influence over legislation and presidential nominations. Trump told Fox News he did not see the losses as a hit on him, and credited his record on the economy.

WHO IS THANEDAR?

Thanedar, 69, is a businessman and former chemical-testing company owner who first won his seat in 2022, took over from a Black representative and was re-elected in 2024. He lost his Democratic primary on August 4 to the state representative Donavan McKinney, 51.9 per cent to 48.1, after a campaign in which his opponent argued the district needed a Detroiter. McKinney is the favourite to win the seat in the safely Democratic district, so Thanedar is set to leave Congress in January.

With inputs from ANI