Trump deserved US midterm defeat – Kemi Badenoch

Kemi Badenoch...Photo Credit: IG/ kemibadenoch

British Conservative Party leader, Kemi Badenoch, has said United States President Donald Trump deserved to be defeated in the country’s midterm elections, criticising his handling of the Iran war, trade policies and treatment of allies, The Independent reports on Saturday.

Badenoch described Trump’s electoral setback as “entirely self-inflicted” and condemned what she called his “dirty” style of politics in an interview with The Independent Editor-in-Chief, Geordie Greig.

The Democrats won control of both chambers of Congress in Tuesday’s midterm elections, flipping at least seven Senate seats and more than two dozen House districts in a major setback for Trump’s Republican Party.

Asked whether Trump deserved the defeat, Badenoch replied, “Yeah. He has not been acting in the way that I would consider conservative.”

She criticised his tariffs, threats towards Canada and Greenland, and disputes with US allies, saying his actions contradicted conservative principles of free markets and better trade.

“Where is the push for free markets and better trade… rather than protectionism, America first, the squabbling with allies? That’s not what conservatives do,” she said.

Badenoch also criticised Trump’s personal attacks on journalists and political figures, saying his conduct fell below the standards expected of a statesman.

“Trump is very charming in person, but you see the way that he talks about journalists, about individuals. It doesn’t meet the standards a statesman should meet – always wanting to get dirty in terms of insults and so on,” she said.

She said she was particularly unhappy with Trump’s remarks about British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and described his treatment of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House as “awful”.

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On the Iran war, Badenoch said she understood Trump’s initial decision to launch the military action, which she supported because of concerns about Iran acquiring nuclear weapons, but questioned the absence of a clear strategy.

“We don’t want them getting nuclear weapons. But where’s the plan?” she asked.

She also said she would have been content if Trump had lost the 2024 presidential election to his Democratic opponent, Kamala Harris.

Asked which of the two candidates she preferred, Badenoch said, “I would say I like them both equally. Make of that what you will.”

The Conservative leader also argued that Trump had squandered the broad coalition of voters that helped him win the presidency, including Latino voters and more Black voters than any previous Republican candidate.

“What’s the first thing he does? Tariffs, and then talking about Greenland and Canada. A lot of people were wondering, ‘What are you doing?’” she said.

Badenoch’s comments came amid wider criticism of Trump’s handling of the economy and foreign policy following the Republicans’ losses in the midterms.

Badenoch is the leader of the UK Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition. She became Conservative leader in November 2024 after defeating Robert Jenrick in the party’s leadership contest. She previously served as the UK’s Business and Trade Secretary and Minister for Women and Equalities under former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

Badenoch, whose birth name is Olukemi Olufunto Adegoke, was born in Wimbledon, London, in 1980 to Nigerian parents.