FT News Briefing - Martin Wolf on the US midterms: Trump loses. European populism lives on.

Before the 2026 midterms, Timothy Garton Ash, emeritus professor of European studies at the University of Oxford and author of ‘Europe in 7½ Chapters’, described the elections as a crucial test of US democracy. Now, with the Democrats’ sweeping victory, could the tide be turning against rightwing populism on both sides of the Atlantic or will Europe’s nationalist parties continue to gain ground? Garton Ash and Martin Wolf discuss the common factors between European nationalists, what European politicians can learn from a Democrat victory and whether there’s reason to hope for the future of liberal democracy.

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Host: Martin Wolf

Producer: Mischa Frankl-Duval

Senior producers: Edwin Lane, Laurence Knight

Executive producer: Manuela Saragosa

Video editor: Richard Topping

Senior Audio Engineer: Breen Turner

Broadcast engineers: Andrew Georgiades

Podcast development: Laura Clarke

FT Global Head of Audio: Flo Phillips

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