# Europe's far-right leaders distance from Trump after midterm losses > After Republicans lost control of Congress, European far-right figures who once celebrated Trump are now backing away from association with him. - Title: Europe's far-right leaders distance from Trump after midterm… - Summary: After Republicans lost control of Congress, European far-right figures who once celebrated Trump are now backing away from association with him. - Keywords: donald trump, republican party, midterm elections, alternative for germany, alice weidel, national rally, jordan bardella, vox party, santiago abascal, iran war, far-right europe, maga movement - Source: TIME — https://time.com/article/2026/11/06/europe-far-right-leaders-backing-away-from-trump-after-midterm-losses - Author: Tiago Ventura - Published: 2026-11-06T22:00:26+00:00 - Read time: 3 min - Topics: donald trump, republican party, midterm elections, alternative for germany, alice weidel, national rally, jordan bardella, vox party, santiago abascal, iran war, far-right europe, maga movement ## Republicans lose Congress in midterms The Republican Party suffered significant losses in the midterm elections, losing control of both the House and Senate. Europe's far-right leaders are now distancing themselves from Trump. ## Far-right figures once celebrated Trump Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Santiago Abascal, leader of Spain's far-right Vox party, were among European lawmakers invited to Trump's Inauguration Day in January twenty twenty-five. ## Weidel blames Iran war for GOP defeat Alice Weidel, co-leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany party, said Trump's broken campaign promise to avoid interventionist foreign policy caused Republican losses. His war with Iran is now in its ninth month. > Trump had promised his voters he would not pursue an interventionist foreign policy. This broken campaign promise has now come back to haunt the Republicans. ## Weidel calls Republican defeat remarkable Weidel acknowledged that the party in power typically loses seats in midterms but said the scale of Republican defeat is remarkable and explained primarily by the devastating consequences of the Iran war. ## Trump Administration backed AfD openly Vice President J.D. Vance met with Weidel in February twenty twenty-five and criticized Germany's firewall approach against the AfD. Elon Musk appeared virtually at an AfD campaign event while heading the Department of Government Efficiency. ## Trump praised AfD's state election win After the AfD won a state election in September, Trump remarked that the populist party finally got tired of Germany's horrible immigration rules and regulations that have hurt Germany. > The populist party in Germany just had a really big night. They finally got tired of the absolutely horrible immigration rules and regulations, which have hurt Germany. ## Bardella distances National Rally from Trump Jordan Bardella, president of France's far-right National Rally, said the American intervention in Iran carried very heavy consequences for world economies and that Trump's second term differs significantly from his first. > What is certain is that Donald Trump's second term differs quite significantly, in its philosophy and foreign policy, from his first, during which his political ambition was to withdraw the United States from major global conflicts. ## Republican defeat sends shock waves Georgios Samaras, assistant professor of public policy at King's College London, says the Republican defeat sent shock waves across Europe. Trump's international standing is gone and far-right parties are losing their global leader. ## Abascal ignores midterm discussion Santiago Abascal, who will take part in a snap election at the end of November, backed away from discussing the midterms. He told reporters he could not care less about what happens in other countries. > I'm not in Michigan to analyze an election, I'm in Ciudad Real. And considering the November twenty-ninth elections, I couldn't care less about what happens in other countries. ## Abascal's shift from Trump alliance Abascal's positioning contrasts sharply with his U.S. alliance last year, when Trump praised him for doing a great job in Spain at the twenty twenty-five Conservative Political Action Conference. ## Transnational far-right networks weakening Aurélien Mondon, professor of politics at the University of Bath, says far-right parties benefited from transnational cooperation with the MAGA movement but can easily detach from failures of counterparts elsewhere. ## MAGA brand now an electoral liability Mujtaba Rahman, managing director for Europe at Eurasia Group, says far-right leaders have distanced themselves from MAGA for some time. Association with the Trump brand is now an electoral liability across the European Union. ## Meloni clashed with Trump over Greenland In January, when Trump ramped up threats to annex Greenland, Meloni urged the European Union to unite against what she called a direct challenge to European sovereignty.She also said tariff threats would be a mistake. ## Iran war deepens European tensions The Iran war has hit European markets with soaring energy costs, adding to cost-of-living pressures.Matteo Salvini, Italy's deputy Prime Minister and leader of the far-right League party, hoped midterm losses signal a halt to interventionism. ## Far-right may keep Trump ties covert Rahman argues the midterm results have tarnished the MAGA brand. Far-right parties may cool links with the Trump Administration, keeping any association covert rather than overt moving forward. > I think the conclusion, given the chaos, the turbulence, and incompetence of the Administration, is actually that MAGA and Trump are a liability, and if there is any association, it is better to be covert, not overt. ## Key takeaway European far-right leaders are distancing themselves from Trump following Republican midterm defeats, citing his failed campaign promise to avoid foreign wars and the Iran conflict's economic impact.