MAHA blames GOP defeat on Trump’s broken promises on pesticides and war in Iran

Influencers in the Make America Healthy Again movement are blaming the Republican midterm election defeat on broken promises from President Donald Trump and his administration on top priorities for the coalition, including reducing pesticides and keeping food costs low.Trump and fellow Republicans have struggled to retain the support of online activists, often referred to as “MAHA moms,” after the president signed an executive order in February to boost the domestic production of the pesticide glyphosate.Earlier this year, the Trump administration sided with Bayer before the Supreme Court over whether the company should be required to disclose that its pesticide glyphosate, the main chemical of Roundup and a staple in U.S. agriculture, has been found by international health regulatory bodies to cause cancer. The Supreme Court ultimately decided to give Bayer legal liability protection. MAHA pundits said following the election results that the pesticide issue, on top of the unpopular war in Iran driving up the costs of living, alienated female swing voters that put Trump over the edge in 2024.Alex Clark Voetberg, host of the Culture Apothecary wellness podcast from Turning Point USA, said on X on election night that turnout for female swing MAHA voters was low in part because the Trump administration “broke almost every promise on MAHA, no new wars, Epstein, [and] affordability.”“MAHA moms stayed home and it could’ve swayed some of these races that were unbearably close,” Clark Voetberg said. “Should’ve listened to our warnings on protecting glyphosate–but you needed Bayer for the war.” Broke almost every promise on MAHA, no new wars, Epstein, affordability…There is a clear direction of where conservatives need to head in 2028 if we want a fighting chance. Otherwise AOC will be president.— Alexandra Voetberg (@Realalexclark) November 4, 2026 Vani Hari, a food policy influencer who has been critical of the Trump administration since the glyphosate Supreme Court case, reposted a quote of hers from April saying that conservative women are “not going to feel called to go vote” because of broken promises on pesticides and the war in Iran.“Women don’t come out to vote for glyphosate and war,” Hari told Politico in April. “They just don’t.” Exit polling from NBC News on Tuesday found roughly 28% of women voters identified as a supporter of the MAHA movement, compared to 38% who said they were not. Another third of voters reported not knowing enough to say.Of female voters, 62% were “very concerned” about how the costs of healthcare affected their personal financial situation, compared to only 54% of male voters. Women were also more likely to say they were very concerned about the costs of food and groceries, at 64% compared to only 51% of male voters.Six in 10 female voters said the Trump administration’s policies have made it worse for Americans to get needed healthcare, compared to five in 10 male voters who said the same.EXIT POLLS SHOW 2026 VOTERS FIND DEMOCRATS HAD EDGE ON ALL ISSUES ASIDE FROM IMMIGRATIONJennifer Galardi, health and wellness policy analyst for the Heritage Foundation, told the Washington Examiner ahead of the elections on Tuesday that she does not believe MAHA was “pulling as much weight as it did in 2024” because of the economic strain on families.“It’s not where people’s major concerns lie,” Galardi said. “Sadly, we should always be concerned about health, but when people are struggling financially, it’s tough to get them to hear anything else.”