In a post on Truth Social, the US President wrote: "Trump not being on the ballot and the government shutdown were the two reasons why Republicans lost the election tonight," attributing the failures to external factors such as the temporary federal government shutdown and his absence from local races.
Trump had personally intervened in several races, including those in New Jersey and Virginia, where he had supported Jack Ciattarelli and Winsome Earl-Sears, who also suffered losses. The day before the election, he had urged his supporters to vote for former Gov. Andrew Cuomo over Democrat Zohran Mamdani and Republican Curtis Sliwa in the New York mayoral race.
However, his efforts proved futile: Mamdani triumphed, while all the candidates supported by Trump lost their races.
After the losses, the President attempted to shift attention to more favorable news for him, noting that his interview on "60 Minutes" had "the highest viewership in years."
Political analysts in the US have described Trump's reaction as an attempt to avoid responsibility after a series of electoral failures, which indicate a weakening of his political influence on the Republican scene.
