Too little, too late: Trump takes on gas prices as fuel costs hamper his midterm hopes

A gas pump in Allagash, Maine, on 14 October 2026. Photograph: Charly Triballeau/AFP/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenA gas pump in Allagash, Maine, on 14 October 2026. Photograph: Charly Triballeau/AFP/Getty ImagesUS midterm elections 2026Too little, too late: Trump takes on gas prices as fuel costs hamper his midterm hopesPolls show US voters are deeply upset by high gas prices and are likely to punish Republicans in the midterms as a result

With fewer than two weeks until the midterms, US voters are unlikely to see relief on one of this election cycle’s main issues: gas prices.

Airing up her car’s tires at a Speedway in Perrysburg, Ohio, Toledo resident Sharie Smith, 41, says soaring costs are having a direct impact on her life.

“It’s affecting my budget,” she says. “You got to take away certain things, you got to take away from your kids, like extracurricular activities.” She says high gas prices are making it harder to pay for the fees for her children’s football games.

Every 10 days, she used to fill up her gray Chevy Malibu for $30 to $40, but now it costs $50 to $60. It stings, she says. “Especially that with the price of groceries,” she adds.

“And I don’t even have a big car. I feel bad for those people with big cars, like trucks.”

Donald Trump has made many promises about bringing down gas prices and specifically touted several diesel cost-savings deals this month, but voters won’t see lower costs by 3 November, say energy analysts.

National average prices for gasoline and diesel are down marginally from a month ago, according to AAA, but remain substantially higher than last year. Compared with 2025, gasoline costs are up more than $1.25 a gallon, at $4.29, while diesel prices are up nearly 75%, to $6.30 a gallon.

View image in fullscreenPeople protest outside an Trump event in Sumterville, Florida, on 1 May 2026. Photograph: Thomas Simonetti/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesPolls show that US voters are deeply upset by high gas prices and are likely to punish Republicans as a result. A 10 October poll by Politico showed that even if Trump were to bring the price of gasoline down by $1 a gallon, most voters polled would not likely be swayed to vote Republican.

Earlier this month, Trump announced several deals attempting to lower diesel prices, including promoting greater use of “red dye” diesel fuel normally reserved for off-highway use, temporarily lifting sanctions on Russian diesel imports, and now a one-time, $8bn diesel-fuel subsidy for farmers to help with harvest.

Ed Hirs, energy fellow at the University of Houston, says these moves will have no impact. “Zero. No elaboration needed,” he says.

Under the Russia deal, the US can import 2.24m barrels of Russian diesel, with more to follow. That initial figure amounts to just 14 hours of US diesel demand, says Andrew Critchlow, head of energy news for Dow Jones Energy. For context, the global diesel market uses nearly 30m barrels a day.