Iran war pushes fuel costs into Republican campaign debate

Republican candidates and lawmakers are increasingly calling for an end to the nearly seven-month war in Iran as rising fuel and food prices become a midterm election issue. The conflict has disrupted oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, contributing to higher energy costs in the United States.

A Congressional Budget Office report said the war added 2.3 percentage points to the annualized inflation rate in the second quarter of 2026. Regular gasoline prices rose about 52% to roughly $4.48 a gallon, while diesel prices increased 71% from the start of the war.

Former Michigan Rep. Mike Rogers, the Republican Senate nominee, said in a campaign ad that the war should end quickly because Michigan families are struggling with grocery and gas prices. Polling cited in the source found that Republican support for the war had declined since the spring.

Read the full story at time.com.