Republicans distance themselves from Trump before midterms

A few weeks before the November midterms, several Republican candidates are choosing to mark their differences with Donald Trump on immigration, the war in Iran or the cost of living. The president, who wishes to make the vote a referendum on his person, is not following the same strategy. Peter Loge, professor of political communication at George Washington University, judges Donald Trump “generally unpopular” and believes that he has become “a ball and chain at the feet of most Republican candidates”.

In Florida, Congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar directly criticized certain White House decisions on immigration. “Mr. President, some of your immigration control measures have gone too far,” she says in a campaign video. She adds that “the same Hispanics who helped you return to the White House in 2024 feel betrayed today.” Until now a faithful ally of Donald Trump, the elected official nevertheless maintains her support. The president, however, described it as “a little too soft” on border control.

War in Iran and rising prices

The distancing also concerns the war in Iran and its effects on prices. In Michigan, Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers said Monday that "the war in Iran must end to bring down costs." In Iowa, Ashley Hinson, also a Senate candidate, believes that Americans “should not have to pay at the pump or at the checkout for the war in Iran.” However, she continues to display support for Donald Trump on her campaign website.

The national context partly explains this caution. An Ipsos poll released Monday shows that 32% of Americans have a favorable opinion of Donald Trump's mandate, its lowest level since his return to the White House. Peter Loge considers certain policies "particularly toxic", citing the trade war with Canada, the crackdown on immigration and fuel prices. “It’s not a good year to be a Republican candidate,” he believes, judging that using Donald Trump in the campaign would be “a political mistake.”

Trump little featured in election advertising

Election advertisements also illustrate this desire not to place the president at the center. According to a CNN analysis of the first two weeks of September 2026, only 12 of the 500 television spots broadcast by Republicans mentioned Donald Trump. The president, however, adopts the opposite strategy. At the Republican convention in Dallas earlier this month, he said, "You have to pretend I'm a candidate." Several party figures did not participate, including Senator Susan Collins, candidate for re-election in Maine.

Our file on the midterms

For Mike Fahey, political communications consultant, these developments do not necessarily reflect “suddenly ideological independence”. According to him, “the candidates distance themselves from the subjects where the political pressure is the greatest” and above all seek to show that they exist politically on their own. The effectiveness of this strategy will depend, according to him, on the perception of voters: “It will largely depend on whether voters see this separation as authentic or as an electoral maneuver.”