Joe Rogan helped Trump win in 2024. Then Republicans lose the midterms, and he realizes the party’s mistake: ‘They lost most of the country’

Joe Rogan, who was a major voice in the 2024 election and helped boost Donald Trump with younger male voters, recently shared a blunt take on why the Republican Party suffered such a massive defeat. During a broadcast on Friday, as reported by The New York Times, he claimed that the party missed the mark with a huge portion of the population. “They didn’t just lose the podcast bros,” Rogan said. “They lost most of the country.”

It is a notable change in tone for the podcaster. Rogan had largely stayed away from talking about the midterms, spending much of his recent airtime on topics like dinosaurs and other curiosities. He even mentioned on Wednesday that he does not enjoy politics, saying, “It’s all gross; I hate it,” and “I don’t like politics at all.” His silence had been a topic of conversation because so many people credited the manosphere with helping carry Republicans to victory back in 2024.

Rogan pointed to a few specific reasons for the current state of affairs. He noted that support started to fade when the Trump administration got into a war in Iran that he believes nobody wanted. He also criticized the move to put militarized police in the streets to handle an immigration crackdown. While he did mention that closing the border and seeing a drop in crime were positive developments, he felt the broader approach to immigration went too far by targeting good people who simply lacked the correct paperwork.

This sentiment seems to be shared by others in the space

Theo Von, who also hosted the president on his show in August 2024, has been quiet on the election results lately. Andrew Schulz, who had the president on his show, Flagrant, shortly before the 2024 vote, has also moved on to other subjects. It appears that many of these creators are returning to their roots as entertainers, though it might also signal a trend where conservative podcasters are tuning out the president in favor of different topics.

The data seems to back up the idea that something has changed with the audience. Estimates from The New York Times suggest that men between the ages of 18 and 29 moved more than 30 points to the left in this election cycle. Some conservative voices, like broadcaster Clay Travis, argue that the drop in interest from podcasters is simple. He suggested that when Trump is not on the ballot, the stakes just do not feel as high for the average listener.

Other voices in the conservative media space have been much harsher. Pundit Matt Walsh stated, “The Trump chapter is finished,” and claimed that the president is an unpopular leader with no real power left. Meanwhile, influencers like Myron Gaines argued on X that the party’s losses were tied to how they treated men, writing, “A party that hates its own men is destined to lose,” and adding, “Men built this country, and they are not the enemy.”

Rogan himself seems a bit frustrated by how he is perceived by the public. He expressed annoyance at being labeled as a representative of the far right, noting that many people form opinions based on clips rather than listening to his full shows. He also downplayed the actual influence of podcasters, telling his audience, “It’s a sickness of our society that people take our opinions so importantly.”