Midterm Elections/Democrats capture the Senate and gain the majority in the House of Representatives. The blue wave shakes up Trump’s economic populist line

US midterm elections have starteddemocratic party The “blue wave” not only caused Trump to lose the Republican Party’s advantage of full control of Congress, but also shook his populist economic line focused on higher tariffs and the reestablishment of manufacturing. Voter dissatisfaction with prices and war with Iran helped Democrats gain groundLok Sabha Regain majority, and controlmanagement committee But to actually reverse Trump’s policies, we would still face a presidential veto.

Many news organizations project that the Democrats won the House of Representatives and captured five Senate seats in Kansas, Texas, South Carolina, North Carolina and Ohio from the Republicans. Democrats need a net gain of four seats to take control of the Senate, and they still need to pick up seats in Michigan and Minnesota. NBC News estimates that the final number of seats in the House of Representatives will be 248 for Democrats and 187 for Republicans.

This wave of flipping has penetrated deeply into the Republican vote base, showing that voters’ dissatisfaction with the economy and the war has translated into votes. Trump’s pre-election support fell to historically low levels and made it difficult for Republican candidates to differentiate themselves from him. Even with greater campaign funding and overall redrawing of districts, which was beneficial to the Republican Party, they still failed to maintain a majority in the House of Representatives.

Bloomberg commented that Trump’s setback this time not only caused the Republican Party to lose seats, but also showed that his economic policies were unpopular. Economic populism was originally intended to ignore the recommendations of mainstream economists and cater to public opinion; Now, voters believe that higher tariffs have raised prices and made life more burdensome, and have instead become an electoral liability for the Republican Party.

Although the US economy has been supported by an AI investment boom, the Iran war and tariffs have revived inflation, depressed real wages, forced the Federal Reserve (Fed) to raise interest rates again, and the overall job market is also lacking improvement. These results are inconsistent with Trump’s pledge to lower prices and restore factory jobs.

Bloomberg cited that there are 1.2 million fewer employed men than when Trump returned to the White House in January 2025, and men are his main support group. Although the US manufacturing industry added 72,000 jobs this year, the number of non-supervisory employees working directly on factory production lines decreased by 23,000. There are 27,900 fewer factory jobs in Michigan than there were when Trump was first elected president in November 2016.

There are possible explanations for these figures, but for Trump, who calls for fighting for workers’ interests, the actual results clearly fail to deliver on his promises.

A survey of American workers by the Economic Innovation Organization, a Washington think tank, also found that respondents rated Trump’s economic performance poorly. Not only do they dislike tariffs, but they also believe that tariffs raise prices; They also do not agree with policies that are under the populist banner, such as government investment in American companies.

However, this does not mean that voters have completely rejected economic populism. In the survey, most workers said they would be more willing to support candidates who would dare to stand up against health insurance companies, big banks and AI companies. Bloomberg commented that populist demands may shift toward new targets, and whether Trump’s line can continue to attract voters has been tested. Politicians preparing to contest the 2028 elections should take note.

Changes in Congress’s power will also put practical limits on Trump’s policies. After the new Congress takes office on January 3 next year, he will no longer be able to pass bills with only Republican support. The Democratic Party will gain the power to issue subpoenas, initiate investigations, and even initiate impeachment proceedings. It is expected that it will be targeted at the Trump administration, family and business interests.

The business community is also ready for investigation. Whether companies with close ties to the Trump administration receive special treatment in obtaining government contracts, merger approvals, etc., as well as transactions between companies and the Trump family, and donations to projects such as the new White House ballroom, could all come under scrutiny.

But the congressional reversal doesn’t mean all of Trump’s policies will be undone. He still controls the White House and has threatened to become “Mr. No.” The first thing that weakens the blue wave is the public opinion base of this set of policies. How much further changes can be made still depends on the checks and balances of Congress and the response of the White House.

Investors first reduced their stake in risky assets. US stock futures fell further, the US dollar weakened, and funds moved into US government bonds for safe haven, indicating that the market is reevaluating the policy direction of the White House and Congress after being controlled by different political parties.