[Anchor]

The Republican Party has handed over even its political stronghold, which it had maintained for nearly a century, to the Democratic Party. Candidates directly backed by President Trump suffered consecutive defeats.

Reporter Kim Hye-young examines what shook public sentiment in the United States.

[Reporter]

For the first time in 38 years, a Democratic state senator has emerged in the Republican stronghold of Texas.

Thirty-seven-year-old candidate James Talarico defeated the Republican candidate who had received full support from President Trump.

The Republicans poured in about 300 million dollars, and even Elon Musk provided a massive amount of support, but they could not turn the tide.

[James Talarico/U.S. Texas State Senator-elect: We just took Texas back. We proved that all the money in the world is useless in front of the people of Texas.]

In Ohio, a Democratic candidate defeated the Republican incumbent state senator, and in Kansas, a Democratic state senator has emerged for the first time in a staggering 94 years.

[Adam Hamilton/U.S. Kansas State Senator-elect: I think Kansans, whether they are Republicans, Independents, or Democrats, are saying that what is happening in Washington right now is wrong.]

With consecutive upsets in traditional Republican-leaning regions, the Democratic Party swept 6 out of 7 battleground areas that had been designated as key contests.

Analysts point out that the decisive factors behind the consecutive crushing defeats of the Republican Party were, above all, the prolonged war in Iran and high inflation.

As prices of gasoline and daily necessities soared and the burden of living expenses exploded, even supporters who voted for Trump in the presidential election two years ago turned their backs in droves.

[U.S. Georgia Voter: I am worried about the future of my children, the economic situation, and the job market.]

[U.S. Maine Voter: I am not happy with the way things are going in our country right now. Both the economy and the war issues.]

Complaints also erupted that President Trump is undermining the traditional values of American democracy through excessive immigration crackdowns and press suppression that continued during his second term.

[Mason Richey/Professor, Graduate School of International Studies, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies: Even the people who voted for President Trump have grown sick and tired of the misgovernance. A lot of Republican candidates took positions that were very unpopular with the public.]

President Trump, tripped up by war and inflation, is seeing his political footing shake as even the Republican Party's strongholds collapse.

(Video Editing: Kim Ho-jin, Design: Seo Hyun-jung, Kang Yoon-jung, Park Chun-woong)