Eighteen people who voted for Donald Trump in 2024, and 14 of them have doubts about the Iran deal. Reuters reported on June 27 that this is where its monthly interviews with the same group landed after the president’s interim agreement to end the war, which has dragged down his approval rating and drawn criticism across the political spectrum, even from supporters.
What the deal does
The memorandum of understanding was announced on June 14. It reopened the Strait of Hormuz, temporarily lifted U.S. oil sanctions on Iran and authorized a $300 billion fund for the country’s reconstruction. Reuters said that fund will be a private investment vehicle, not a government-funded plan, and that exact details have not been released.
The voters had mostly backed the war early on, believing strikes were needed to deplete Iran’s long-range missiles and cripple its nuclear program. Nearly four months on, with Iran politically emboldened and many military capabilities intact, they were skeptical that Tehran would keep its word. Terry Alberta, 65, a pilot in Michigan, said the aim should be “to truly weaken the Iranian regime” rather than “beat them up a little bit and then step back and let them rebuild.” A Reuters/Ipsos poll found only a quarter of Americans think the war was worth the costs.
“The kiss of death”
Steve Egan, 65, a promotional product distributor in Tampa, turned against Trump in early 2025 when tariff-driven price rises hurt his business. He said the war “doesn’t seem like it’s been worth it,” noting that regime change “didn’t happen.” Trump’s endorsement, Egan said, would now be “the kiss of death” when he picks candidates in the midterms.
Juan Rivera, 26, said Trump “criticized his predecessors about negotiating with terrorists, and he’s basically done the same exact thing.” Rivera still plans to vote mostly Republican. But while canvassing Latino voters near San Diego, he met supporters so let down that they asked: “Why should I vote when the president’s not doing what he promised?”
Robert Billups, 35, of Washington state, was cautiously optimistic the peace would hold, but said he no longer leans toward Republican candidates. Brandon Neumeister, 37, a Pennsylvania corrections worker, said he was unlikely to vote anyway, because he was disgusted with politics.
A hope for a bigger plan
Not everyone has given up. Six of the more loyal voters hoped Trump still had secret plans to bring Iran to heel. Kate Mottl, 63, a secretary in the Chicago suburbs, said “there’s a bigger plan here,” and Rich Somora, 62, an engineer in North Carolina, said he could not imagine Trump had gone this far without a way to remove the mullahs. If they are still in power in another month, he said, he will start to worry. Reuters noted that diplomats and analysts say the war has strengthened the clerical rulers’ grip.
A White House spokesperson told Reuters that Trump’s results “on the battlefield and at the negotiating table” are “nothing short of remarkable.” Joyce Kenney, 74, a retiree in Arizona, backed lifting sanctions but called the reconstruction fund a bridge too far: “That’s not our responsibility.”
