Badenoch: Trump Had It Coming, Deserved Midterm Defeat

British Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has said United States President Donald Trump deserved to lose the country's midterm elections, criticising his handling of the Iran war, trade policies and treatment of international allies.

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 Trump's 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, arguing that his conduct fell below the standards expected of a statesman.

She expressed particular displeasure with his remarks about British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and described his treatment of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House as “awful”.

On the Iran war, Badenoch said she understood and supported Trump's initial decision to launch military action because of concerns about Iran acquiring nuclear weapons.

However, she questioned the absence of a clear strategy, asking, “We don't want them getting nuclear weapons. But where's the plan?”

The Conservative leader also said she would have been comfortable 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.”

She further 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.

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

She became Conservative Party leader in November 2024 after defeating Robert Jenrick in the party's leadership contest. She previously served as Britain'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.