Democrats abandon Tesla as Musk turns right-wing influencer

Elon Musk has called for a ‘red wave’ in this year’s US elections – REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane

US Democrats are turning their backs on Tesla as Elon Musk gains traction as a right-wing influencer.

New figures from the research company Strategic Vision show that the proportion of Tesla buyers identifying as Democrats plunged last Autumn, despite the electric car maker’s eco credentials.

Republicans buying the cars outnumbered Democrats by two-to-one.

Tesla is America’s leading electric vehicle maker and the cars were once seen as a beacon of left-wing virtue signalling.

However, Mr Musk’s frequent criticism of Joe Biden, his association with Republican presidential hopefuls and his calls for a “red wave” in this year’s US presidential election are believed to have put off Democrat voters.

Strategic Vision’s data, published by the Wall Street Journal, found that just 15pc of Tesla buyers were Democrats in October, compared to 39pc across 2022.

The percentage identifying as Republicans was 32pc, while 44pc said they were independents.

Tesla recently reported its first drop in car sales in four years and on Tuesday night it said revenues had fallen by 9pc in the first quarter of the year, its biggest drop since 2012.

However, its shares rose by almost 10pc on Wednesday after Mr Musk pledged to speed up production of a new, cheaper, electric car.

Mr Musk’s political pronouncements and his ownership of Twitter, where he has restored Donald Trump’s account and relaxed how the site is policed, have pushed left-wing motorists to alternative electric cars from Cadillac, Hyundai and Mercedes, Strategic Vision said.

Others have resorted to buying bumper stickers distancing themselves from the company’s chief executive, featuring phrases such as “I bought this before we knew Elon was crazy”.

The survey suggests that Tesla’s popularity among left-wingers has since rebounded somewhat, with 35pc of buyers in February identifying as Democrats.

Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley found last year that electric vehicle ownership was strongly linked to political positions.

They found that one-third of all electric cars bought in America were registered in the 5pc of counties most likely to vote Democrat.

Play The Telegraph’s brilliant range of Puzzles – and feel brighter every day. Train your brain and boost your mood with PlusWord, the Mini Crossword, the fearsome Killer Sudoku and even the classic Cryptic Crossword.