Elon Musk's political positioning might have enhanced his appeal among conservatives, but this probably isn’t sufficient to recover the sales he has lost from other groups.

• 35% of those polled who identify as conservative mention that their view of Tesla has become more positive over the last half-year.
• Only 17%, however, of conservatives would think about purchasing an electric vehicle.
• 53% of liberals and 31% of self-described "centrists" polled say they are now less inclined to think about buying a Tesla for their future car purchase.

A week has passed since Elon Musk and President Donald Trump promoted Tesla with an infomercial on the White House lawn. The extraordinary incident occurred following a 15% plunge in Tesla's stock value within just one day, marking the company's most significant downturn in several years. On that same day, Trump expressed unusually high praise for Tesla. even though he previously offered harsh critiques of electric vehicles Therefore, will his newly discovered enthusiasm for Teslas and Musk's efforts to dismantle the federal government help electric vehicles gain traction among consumers? who have traditionally shown little interest in them?

Certainly not. The information comes from a market research company. Escalent Indicates that despite stunts such as Musk’s appearance at the White House or his contentious political statements and actions having enhanced Tesla's image among conservative audiences, the cumulative impact remains largely detrimental to the brand.

From February 15th through February 28th, Escalent polled 897 individuals owning vehicles from the 2020 model year onwards, with intentions to purchase another new automobile within the following half-decade. Among these participants, 39 percent identified themselves as politically conservative While 37% identified as "middle-of-the-road" political centrists, only 24% described themselves as liberal.

Nevertheless, among the liberal respondents, 36% expressed interest in purchasing an electric vehicle (EV). Approximately 13% of these individuals already owned one. The moderates showed considerable inclination as well, with 26% contemplating getting an EV, and out of this group, 14% had become EV owners.

These figures fell to 17% and 7% among conservatives, however.

When asked about changes in their views on Tesla over the last six months, liberals showed significantly more negativity, with 53% reporting a less favorable stance. In contrast, only 35% of conservatives indicated they now view Tesla more positively.

The same proportion of liberals were unlikely to think about choosing a Tesla as their future car, whereas 31% of conservatives expressed willingness to do so. It might be that Musk’s promotion of DOGE aligns more closely with conservative values, particularly when questioning aspects like efficiency.

However, this will not be enough to rescue Tesla, asserts KC Boyce, the Vice President at Escalant. He stated, "Liberals and moderate voters make up the bulk of the consumer base overall, particularly within the electric vehicle sector.” While these centrist voters may have slightly fewer reservations about Tesla compared to liberal ones, they remain much less inclined to purchase a Tesla when looking into options for their next car."

Certainly, conservatives might be more inclined to purchase a Tesla electric vehicle, yet the modest boost in sales from appealing to conservative customers wouldn't compensate for the significant loss in sales from the large group of liberal (and centrist) buyers who initially supported the brand.

It's evident that Tesla is experiencing a downturn. After briefly recovering following Trump and Musk’s White House event promoting Tesla sales, the respite was short-lived. The stock price, which is primarily responsible for Musk's wealth, has resumed its decline.

It appears that the brand is moving forward at full speed without acknowledging much or responding except through odd influencer campaigns. Kim Kardashian shared images from her photo session featuring herself. the Cybertruck , Tesla Cybercab and the prototype Optimus bot for Perfect Magazine, a maneuver that drew the wrath of even those with minimal knowledge of automobiles from popular culture. The brand has turned into extremely harmful for many average individuals, And it's difficult to discern its route back from there.

If we're fortunate, electric vehicles might lose their political baggage over time since they simply represent a novel form of technology. Nevertheless, at present, the head of operations for America’s leading electric vehicle company could potentially be exacerbating this issue rather than alleviating it.

Contact the author: Kevin.Williams@InsideEVs.com

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