Iran aims its war messaging at American voters as the midterms approach
The story
With the US midterm elections only weeks away, Iran has been speaking straight to the American public about what the war is costing them. Officials have used English language posts, open letters and articles in state linked outlets to focus on gas prices, inflation and the wider US economy.
Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who is also Iran's chief negotiator, has been one of the loudest voices. This week he shared a report that inflation rose to 3.7 percent last month, along with a set of gloomy economic headlines and a Road Runner cartoon of Wile E. Coyote being flattened by his own catapult. He aimed the post at Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who leads the sanctions campaign against Iran. Days earlier he posted an image showing diesel prices climbing while housing affordability and consumer confidence fell.
The numbers behind the message are real pain points for voters. Since the war began on February 28, Iran has disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Diesel in the US has hit a record $6.33 a gallon, according to AAA, and gas is around $4.33, up from under $3 before the fighting started. Higher energy costs have pushed up inflation, and the Federal Reserve raised interest rates last month even as Trump called for cuts.
Analysts say Tehran is not necessarily trying to put Democrats in power. The goal is to make the war more politically costly for Trump. Republicans are trying to hold both chambers of Congress on November 3, and Democrats, who largely oppose the war, are competing hard, even in longtime conservative strongholds like Texas.
Trump has said the vote will not shape his Iran policy, and he has suggested he will either reach a deal or return to full scale war once the election is over. If Democrats win control of Congress, they could try to rein in the war, including by holding back funding for the military campaign.
