Andy Burnham has urged Donald Trump to ‘resolve’ the Iran war, as he said the US midterms had been a vote for action on the cost of living.
The Prime Minister risked wading into US politics as he suggested the heavy defeat suffered by the Republicans represented an ‘opportunity’ to settle the crisis.
Deep red states such as Texas abandoned the President’s party, leaving him a lame duck for his last two years in the White House, with the Democrats seizing both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Asked at the Commonwealth summit in Antigua for his reaction to the results and whether he thought they would make Mr Trump more unpredictable, Mr Burnham said: ‘President Trump has accepted the results, and I feel the world has an opportunity now to unite around the issue that’s affecting us all, and that is the cost of living.
‘That has been the issue that I have put front and centre in my first three months in Downing Street and we have made moves.
‘But I can’t get people’s cost of living pressures down until the conflict in the Middle East is resolved, the conflict in Ukraine started by Russia… these are the things we have to focus on now.
‘And I hope the world has a moment to do that. Certainly in my calls with leaders that is what I will be asking everybody to do.’
Andy Burnham suggested the battering in the midterms represented an ‘opportunity’ to settle the Middle East crisis
Donald Trump has been left a lame duck president after heavy midterm losses
Pressed on whether he feared there could be an escalation now the midterms were over, Mr Burnham said: ‘Well, I’ll be working for de-escalation to make it very clear. You know, we want to see a resolution, the Strait of Hormuz fully opened again.
‘That’s what we will be working towards.’
Quizzed on whether the US results, together with the recent victory of Lula in Brazil and Viktor Orban’s defeat in Hungary meant the populist right was in decline, the PM said: ‘I think people want to see the world coming together and focusing on the things that matter to people. That’s what the voters in my view were saying in the US.
‘Let’s get focused in a laser-like way on those cost-of-living issues. I think around the world there is a recognition that countries can’t do that on their own and can’t do that when we have division between nations.
‘That’s what we will be working towards.’
Sadiq Khan has joined MPs gloating at Mr Trump‘s meltdown. The London Mayor stoked his long-running feud with the President by hailing the results as a ‘true rejection’ of his ‘damaging and divisive politics’.
Meanwhile, Labour Left-wingers touted the outcome as evidence that crackdowns on immigration were not popular and a more ‘progressive’ stance can succeed.
Lord Khan posted on social media voicing his delight at the ‘huge victory’ this morning.
‘With a focus on hope, unity and supporting families with the cost of living – their campaign was a true rejection of the damaging and divisive politics of Donald Trump,’ he wrote.
The London Mayor – who has had a long-running feud with Mr Trump – posted on social media voicing his delight this morning
Labour Left-wingers including John McDonnell argued that the results showed Trump’s immigration crackdown was unpopular
Labour MP Ian Byrne posted thanking America for the results
Green leader Zack Polanski singled out the Left-wing firebrand Abdul Ed-Sayed, who became the first Muslim US senator
A slew of Labour and Lib Dem MPs also voiced their joy at the early results.
Former shadow chancellor John McDonnell said: ‘The US results should give confidence to progressives everywhere.
‘People have rejected the racism displayed by Trump and his supporters and in many states have cited his brutal treatment of migrants as a factor in their decision to reject the politics of Trump.’
Labour backbencher Richard Burgon said: ‘Great results – and what a huge blow to Trump!
‘They ran one of the most racist campaigns I’ve ever seen. The billionaires poured vast sums into it. And they still lost!
‘After Lula’s victory last week, it’s another reminder that the far-Right can be beaten!’
Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Bryant pointed out that Nigel Farage had predicted Mr Trump’s party would do better than expected, and his old ally would not get ‘smashed’.
Touring broadcast studios this morning, health minister James Frith said it looked like ‘an enormous night for American democracy and for the Democrats’.
‘We will see where the final numbers end up, but it looks like a seismic shift in domestic politics for the Americans,’ he said.
However, he insisted it would not change Andy Burnham’s relations with the Trump White House.
He told Times Radio: ‘The change of emphasis of power in the States is frequent. But the mainstay of the relationship with the UK Government, as its closest ally, is unwavering and unchanging.
‘So I don’t expect it to change the nature of the relationship at all, it remains very strong.’
In the face of the crushing losses, Mr Trump posted on his Truth Social platform: ‘I wasn’t on the Ballot and if I was, we would have won IN A LANDSLIDE!’
Democrats needed a net gain of four seats in the 100-member Senate to win a majority, while in the 435-member House, they needed three.
Speaking to Fox News, Mr Trump admitted the results had surprised him.
‘I thought they’d do better, we had tremendous rallies,’ he said.
He also congratulated the Democrats and said: ‘They did a good job. They worked very hard.’
But while offering to work with opponents, he had also posted a picture of a red baseball cap emblazoned with the word ‘Veto’, suggesting he would block legislation they sought to take through Congress.
In Texas, Democratic newcomer James Talarico defeated Trump-backed Republican Ken Paxton, while South Carolina elected a Democrat senator for the first time since 1998.
Most remarkably of all, Kansas sent a Democrat to the US Senate, which it had not done since 1932 during the Great Depression.
There were further stunning Democrat Senate victories in Iowa and Ohio, states Trump won by more than 10 points in the presidential election in 2024.
Richard Burgon claimed that the midterms were a victory over ‘racism’
Former Cabinet minister Darren Jones said ‘hope and love’ had beaten ‘money and division’
Lord Khan said the campaign was ‘a true rejection of the damaging and divisive politics of Donald Trump’
In one of the most-watched races Left-wing Democrat Abdul El-Sayed declared victory over Republican Mike Rogers in Michigan, making him the first Muslim elected to the Senate.
The results, reflecting a huge shift in Trump’s once impressive MAGA base, will also cast a cloud over any ambitions Vice President JD Vance has for a 2028 run.
Losing both chambers of Congress will mean Trump entering lame duck territory in his final two years in office.
He will face Democrat-led corruption investigations into himself, his allies and family, and could even be impeached for a third time.
