New research shows that the hate and outrage leftists feel towards Tesla CEO Elon Musk is causing them to buy less EVs in general instead of turning to Tesla rivals.
The Guardian reports that leftists are now far less likely to purchase Tesla EVs due to growing disgust with Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s recent rightward political turn, according to a new study published in the journal Nature. Although that tracks with Tesla dismal sales in the last quarter, the second finding of the study was quite surprising. Fanatical leftists are not turning to Tesla’s competitors, they’re simply buying less electric vehicles.
The research, conducted by psychologist Alexandra Flores from Williams College, found that while leftists had mostly positive intentions around buying electric vehicles as recently as August 2023, their support eroded significantly in the wake of Musk’s alliance with President Donald Trump. Musk helped propel Trump to victory in the 2024 election and later served as his top adviser.
By March 2025, as Musk was gutting the federal workforce with DOGE, leftist voters’ intention to purchase any electric vehicle, not just Tesla models, had slipped into negative territory for the first time.
Flores explains, “The suspicion is that Elon Musk became so synonymous with EVs in the US that perceptions of him affected the entire class of vehicles,” said Flores. “This made them way less appealing to liberals – he really dragged down perceptions of EVs in general.”
At the height of Tesla hysteria, owners went so far as to adorn their vehicles with anti-Musk stickers featuring slogans like “Anti Elon Tesla Club” and “I Bought This Before Elon Went Crazy.”
However, the study found Musk’s political shift did not make conservative Americans any more likely to buy a Tesla or EV, despite separate polling showing Republicans now view the company more favorably. Conservatives largely remain skeptical of electric vehicles and unwilling to consider purchasing one.
Flores hypothesized that EVs’ strong historical association with environmentalism and leftist politics may be more influential for conservative car buyers than any changing opinions of Musk.
Tesla has recently faced slowing sales and a “rough few quarters” according to Musk, with a 12 percent year-over-year decline in U.S. sales in Q2 2025. The company has seen seven straight quarters of new registration declines in its former stronghold of California.
Overall U.S. electric vehicle sales have dipped as well, which may be exacerbated by the upcoming expiration of federal EV tax credits of up to $7500 per vehicle. Industry experts predict a short-term rush to take advantage of the incentives before a potential longer-term slowdown in EV adoption.
Read more at the Guardian here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.
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