Donald Trump’s allies believe his unsubstantiated claim linking Tylenol and vaccines to autism could mobilise voters in the 2026 midterm elections, helping Republicans defy historical trends and retain control of Congress. The strategy taps into the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement championed by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., which focuses on issues such as autism and vaccine injuries that supporters say have been ignored by the medical establishment.
Republican lobbyist and former Moms for America representative Marty Irby told Axios the issue would be a significant factor in the midterms. “Whether it’s the food we eat, whether it’s the vaccines, whether it’s the drugs that the pregnant mother takes, it’s definitely something that mothers across America are paying attention to,” he said.
Trump himself has expressed concern about the GOP’s ability to keep its majority. In an interview with One America News Network, he noted that the party holding the White House often loses seats in midterm elections. “I don’t know why. It’s crazy,” he said. Currently, Republicans hold a six-seat majority in the House and an eight-seat majority in the Senate, though two independents caucus with Democrats.
At a White House press conference on 22 September, Trump urged pregnant women not to take acetaminophen (the active ingredient in Tylenol) and to space out infant vaccines over four or five visits, claiming science proves a link to rising autism rates. Two mothers of autistic children spoke in support, saying they felt heard after years of being dismissed by mainstream medicine.
However, the move has drawn sharp criticism from medical experts and autism advocates, who say it is harmful and misleading. People with autism spectrum disorders and their families condemned the administration’s framing of autism as a disease rather than a lifelong condition to be accommodated.
