Cristina Kirchner Predicts Republican Losses in U.S. Midterm Elections

Former Argentine President Cristina Kirchner said she expects President Donald Trump and the Republican Party to lose ground in the U.S. midterm elections scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 3. In an interview published Monday, Nov. 2, by The Washington Post, she said the outcome could shift the international political landscape and create room for a new wave of progressive forces.

Kirchner pointed to Trump’s efforts to support conservative leaders in Latin America, arguing that political setbacks for right-wing governments could help progressives return to power in the United States and elsewhere. “Paradoxically, the man who did everything he could to help right-wing governments win in Latin America will lose an election in his own country,” she said.

Midterm elections renew part of Congress and are widely viewed as a test of a president’s popularity. Trump is not on the ballot, but voters will choose members of the House of Representatives and some senators. The results could change the balance of power in Congress and make it harder for the Republican administration to advance its agenda. A Reuters/Ipsos poll released Oct. 26 found that 32% of Americans approved of Trump’s performance.

In the interview, Kirchner also said she might run for Argentina’s presidency again in 2027, when President Javier Milei is expected to seek reelection. Now 73, she said any bid would depend on regaining her political rights, which were suspended after her corruption conviction. Asked whether she would run again, Kirchner replied, “Once I regain my political rights, why not?”

Kirchner is serving a six-year prison sentence under house arrest at her Buenos Aires apartment. She was also barred for life from holding public office following a case that examined irregularities in public works contracts in Santa Cruz province during her administrations. She denies wrongdoing and says the case was politically motivated. “Show me where I put the money,” she said, adding that if she had stolen it, she would be free because she could have bought off Argentina’s judicial system, which she called corrupt.

Kirchner and her lawyer, Rafael Valim, have asked the United Nations Human Rights Committee to review the case. The Washington Post interview was her first with an international news outlet since her conviction last year. She said she follows international political developments on television and tries to keep her mind active. She also recalled a visit from Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a longtime political ally. According to Kirchner, Lula advised her to exercise and guard against depression; she said she would not let her circumstances discourage her. “I know why I am here: because of what I represent, the government we built and my refusal to submit to the established powers,” she said.