French, Ukrainian media eye US midterms closely

Two European countries are in the global spotlight: Ukraine enduring its fifth year of war, and France, a Ukrainian ally, grappling with its own political crisis.

Both Ukraine and France have actively reported on the U.S. midterms from different angles for years. But the coverage has evolved. This year Ukrainian media are pinning hopes on the midterms as a potential “lifeline,” while French journalists focus on a potential lame-duck president, depending on results.

“The main question is whether Donald Trump is becoming a “lame-duck president” and whether a clear defeat will mark the beginning of his political twilight,” Guille Paris, a journalist at Le Monde, wrote in an email in French and translated into English.

For Ukraine: make-or-break midterm

Artur Koldomasov, an analyst at Detektor Media, a Ukrainian media watchdog, wrote in an analysis that Ukrainian media view the midterms as providing a potential “lifeline.” He also wrote Ukraine is observing the elections with “feverish excitement.”

Koldomasov said that most of the articles he studied were published after Trump said he would lift sanctions on Russian oil. The Kyiv Independent reported in September, for example, that the Russian sanctions bill is a “make-or-break” moment before the midterms.

The Kyiv Post, meanwhile, included an article about Bill and Hillary Clinton, in different forums, criticizing Trump for what Bill Clinton called abandoning Ukraine.

Mariia Ulianovska, Washington correspondent for news outlet Independence Avenue Media, echoed that the media are focusing on the central question this year: whether support for Ukraine will continue “because someone’s life depends on whether they wake up tomorrow,” Ulianovska said. She spoke in Ukrainian that was translated into English.

Ulianovska also noted coverage of U.S. senators who are retiring — those who were “the strongest voices backing Ukraine.”

French media focus on Trump

The French media are taking a different approach, zeroing in on whether Trump will become become lame duck.

Outlets such as Le Monde are framing the midterms around Trump, paying less attention to the broader context or other issues. Le Monde’s New York writer, for example, recently examined how Trump is using the midterms to improve his image.

Trump continues to draw global interest.

“There is indeed a paradox. Trump is exhausting, but he continues to fascinate. You could say the drama at the White House surpasses many TV series in tension and plot twists,” wrote Paris in French and translated into English.

Sonia Dridi, White House correspondent for the French news channel LCI, said in a voice message that Democrats had never faced such anger toward their own president.

“But it’s true that right now, I think, you can particularly feel the wind turning, with anger and disappointment, especially a great deal of disappointment among some, and I stress the word ‘some’ Republican voters, Dridi said in French and translated into English.

Meanwhile, the newspaper Le Figaro focuses largely on the two major parties and their prospects. The outlet has published articles on how Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are trying to mobilize voters for the Democrats and how many seats Republicans could win.

“In general, French media cover both Democrats and Republicans,” Dridi said.

Dridi also said that French media are focusing on the MAGA campaign and on Latino voters, in particular Latino men, who “supported Trump a lot in 2024” and are today “turning on him,” she said.

Paris said French public attention has shifted toward international issues, including the war in Iran, which has drawn focus away from Ukraine.

“The fact that the world’s leading military power is violating international law and the laws of war without achieving any results is a source of a certain degree of schadenfreude,” Paris said.