Two Republican Senate Candidates Urge Swift End To Iran War, Diverge From Trump

Two Republicans running in competitive US Senate races called Monday for a swift end to the war in Iran, signaling a growing effort by vulnerable candidates to distance themselves from President Donald Trump as the conflict drives up fuel prices, including diesel costs.

Mike Rogers, who is facing Democrat Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan, and Ashley Hinson, who is competing against Democrat Josh Turek in Iowa, adopted a more dovish tone on Iran after previously supporting Trump’s authority to strike Tehran.

The shift was particularly notable for Hinson, a sitting member of the US House of Representatives who has voted six times against measures seeking to restrict Trump’s authority to continue the war, including as recently as last week.

“Iowans are being squeezed and shouldn’t have to foot the bill at the pump or the checkout line for the war in Iran,” Hinson said in a social media post. She called for suspending gasoline taxes, pausing diesel exports and taking other steps while urging the war “to be brought to a successful and immediate end.”

The statements come amid growing concerns among some Republican candidates that the nearly seven-month-old conflict could become an issue in the November midterm elections, when Republicans will seek to defend their narrow majorities in the House and Senate.

Americans have also become more critical of Trump’s handling of the economy and the Iran war as inflation remains elevated. Trump’s approval rating fell to 32%, its lowest level, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released Monday.

Rogers Calls For Quick End To Iran War

Rogers previously supported Trump’s strikes on Iran and argued in a late-July interview with CBS Detroit against efforts to restrict the president’s authority while he negotiated an end to the conflict.

But in a campaign advertisement posted on X on Monday, Rogers took a different approach, speaking from a grocery store about the impact of rising prices.

“The war with Iran needs to end and end quickly,” Rogers said. “When it does, energy costs will plummet. But Michigan families can’t afford to wait for that to happen. We need to do something now.”

He also called for suspending state and federal gasoline taxes and temporarily halting US diesel exports.

Diesel prices are particularly politically sensitive in Iowa, where agriculture is a major part of the economy and farmers rely heavily on diesel-powered machinery and transportation.

Democrats Accuse Republicans Of Election-Year Shift

Democrats said the calls for a swift end to the Iran war represented an election-year change in position by Republicans who had previously supported Trump’s handling of the conflict.

“Mike Rogers is only flip-flopping now because gas hit $5 a gallon and diesel prices hit record highs,” El-Sayed, Rogers’ Democratic opponent, said in a statement.

Hinson’s opponent Turek also criticised her position, writing on X: “It’s easy to send a tweet, but when you had the chance to vote to end this war, you chose not to.”

Other Republicans have recently taken steps to distance themselves from Trump over the war and other issues.

Last week, Iowa Representatives Zach Nunn and Mariannette Miller-Meeks, both facing competitive re-election campaigns, reversed their previous positions and joined Democrats in voting to restrict Trump’s war powers in Iran.

On Thursday, Florida Representative Maria Elvira Salazar released an advertisement arguing that Trump’s immigration crackdown had gone too far and saying some Hispanic supporters felt betrayed.