Donald Trump thinks he knows exactly why Republicans had such a bad night in the 2025 midterm elections. According to him, the main problem was simple: his name was not on the ballot. Trump shared his thoughts on Truth Social on Tuesday, Nov. 4, right as Democrats were winning big races in New York, Virginia, New Jersey, and California.
Democrats had a lot to celebrate that night. Zohran Mamdani made history by becoming the first Muslim mayor of New York City. While the results were coming in, Trump went on his social media platform to share what he thought went wrong for his party, according to People.
“‘TRUMP WASN’T ON THE BALLOT, AND SHUTDOWN, WERE THE TWO REASONS THAT REPUBLICANS LOST ELECTIONS TONIGHT,'” Trump wrote on Truth Social in all capital letters. He said this was what pollsters were saying. The 79-year-old blamed two things for the Republican losses: him not being on the ballot and the government shutdown that was still going on.
There might actually be something to his theory
Trump’s idea about Republican voters staying home when he’s not running might not be completely wrong. The New York Times found that Democratic voters have “overperformed in every nonpresidential election year since 2017.” On the other hand, Republicans seem to care less about voting when Trump is not part of the race.
Trump also blamed the government shutdown, which became the longest one in American history at 36 days on Wednesday, Nov. 5. But even with these reasons, Democrats still won by large amounts in many important races. This included races where Trump had told people to vote for specific Republican candidates.
Exit polls from major networks showed something different from what Trump was saying. The polls found that many voters were actually upset with Trump and the Republican Party, and this made them more likely to vote for Democrats. Things did not look good for Republicans who thought they could keep their positions.
Trump really did not want Mamdani to win in New York City. He even did something unusual by supporting Andrew Cuomo, who is a Democrat. Trump posted on Truth Social that “If Communist Candidate Zohran Mamdani wins the Election for Mayor of New York City, it is highly unlikely that I will be contributing Federal Funds, other than the very minimum as required.”
Democrats won several other big races too. Abigail Spanberger became the first woman to be governor of Virginia. In New Jersey, Mikie Sherrill beat Jack Ciattarelli, who had Trump’s support. California Governor Gavin Newsom also got good news when Proposition 50 passed.
This created a new congressional map that could give Democrats five more seats in the House of Representatives. Trump’s public endorsements continue to play a big role in how he tries to shape politics.
Published: Nov 5, 2025 01:30 pm