The Democrats’ midterms performance shows how Trump – and his imitators – can be beaten | Jonathan Freedland

Joe Biden's party abandoned timidity and neutered the Republican right. Labour should take heed

Politics has brought so much angst in recent years that when hope comes along we should savour it. This week delivered a dollop of unexpectedly good news from the US, news that should encourage, and perhaps instruct, those who oppose the menace of nationalist populism the world over - even here in Britain.

True, the struggle against that danger has enjoyed mixed fortunes this autumn. Jair Bolsonaro was ejected in Brazil, only for an Israeli election to seal the comeback of Benjamin Netanyahu two days later. But the message from Tuesday's US midterms is clear: populists can be defeated.

Jonathan Freedland is a Guardian columnist. Listen to his Politics Weekly America podcast here