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utoPacific’s FADS data show that among Republicans who do NOT want an EV, only 13% say political beliefs are a reason they don’t want them. Rather, cost and charging/range anxiety - the usual EV rejection reasons - top the reasons among Republicans to reject an EV.

And contrary to popular perception, politics don’t seem to play much into Republican shoppers’ attitudes towards EVs.

With Republicans now dominating shopper consideration for the Tesla brand, and with Tesla expected to remain the dominant leader in EV sales for years to come, it explains why EV shoppers are now most likely Republicans.

With Tesla’s continued dominance in the EV space, it may very well be that - ironically - Republican shoppers end up being a lifeline for EVs in the U.S. market.

Indeed, Tesla consideration among EV intenders in 2024 was virtually swapped, with 49% of Tesla considerers who intend to get an EV identifying as Democrats and just 28% identifying as Republicans.

Digging through our FADS data, we found that 48% of Tesla considerers are Republicans, while only 32% of Tesla considerers are Democrats.

While Tesla alienated many potential Democrat customers, the EV maker clearly gained Republican fans in 2025.

Some of the sales decline is due to the same pressures that applied to all EVs in 2025, but there is also no doubt that Tesla boss Elon Musk’s very loud and headline-making embrace of extreme far right politics alienated many shoppers and contributed to Tesla’s sales losses around the world.

While Tesla has been notable for its steep sales declines in 2025, it must be noted that Tesla still accounted for a whopping 44% of all U.S. EV sales in 2025.

That intuitively seemed strange as so much of the anti-EV rhetoric of the last few years has come mostly from the political right, so we dug deeper into the data to get the real story.

And the story has everything to do with Tesla.

We were a bit surprised to see in our latest Future Attribute Demand Study that EV intenders (those who will not just consider, but actually intend to buy one) are actually now more likely to be Republican than Democrat. Specifically, 43% of EV intenders are Republican while 36% are Democrats.

Will Republican Consumers be EVs’ Lifeline in the U.S. Market? — AutoPacific BY: ED KIM, PRESIDENT AND CHIEF ANALYST It’s no secret that EVs are having a rough go in the U.S. market at the moment. The Trump 2.0 administration oversaw the early elimination of the Federal tax...

While Republican policies have certainly dealt a major blow to EV adoption in the U.S. market, our latest data shows that Republican shoppers may actually have a much bigger role in EV adoption growth from here on out.

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CES 2026 and the Automotive Industry's Reckoning — AutoPacific How physical AI and scalable compute platforms — and Qualcomm’s approach in particular — are shaping today’s automotive landscape

Chinese EVs, autonomy, and physical AI.

Read our thoughts after attending CES 2026 last month:
www.autopacific.com/autopacific-...

Rivian's Autonomy & AI Day Shows a Vertically Integrated and AI-Defined Future for the Startup Automaker — AutoPacific By Ed Kim, President and Chief Analyst Rivian has been one of the most talked-about startup automakers in recent years. It successfully launched the R1 series to great critical and customer acclaim,...

What's in store for Rivian's exciting near future? Our chief analyst and president attended the startup's inaugural Autonomy & AI Day event to find out.

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Everyone has "must-have" and "nice to have" features when it comes to vehicle shopping. The top "must-have" feature for 2025 is all wheel drive with 63% of all respondents who want the feature saying they won't buy a vehicle without it.

Qualcomm Shows the Auto Industry the Way Forward — AutoPacific By Ed Kim, President and Chief Analyst Here at AutoPacific, we can't stress enough the degree and the speed at which the automotive and tech industries are converging, and just how significant and...

A well-executed SDV is becoming more and more of a "must". Our own @ekimap.bsky.social was on the ground in Munich last week for IAA Mobility, where he learned first-hand how pivotal Qualcomm's latest developments are in today's auto industry.

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Data from our newly released 2025 Future Vehicle Planner show that about a third of new vehicle shoppers who would consider an EV as their next vehicle say that they are very aware of the tax credit and would buy or lease a new EV because of it.

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Amongst the 18k consumers surveyed in AutoPacific's newest 2025 Future Attribute Demand Study, we noticed growth in trust and interest toward more ADAS safety and autonomous driving features.

Here's what we learned about the top 15 most-wanted features.

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🧵Here's some fresh data! There's been lots of chatter about affordability, so I wanted to dive into our @autopacific.bsky.social research that specifically zooms in and looks at today's budget-conscious shoppers who plan to spend $25k-$35k on their next new vehicle.

Join me as I unpack my findings.

As Affordability Woes Rise, Budget-Conscious Vehicle Shoppers Want to Keep it Simple — AutoPacific Summer is here and the automotive industry continues to be caught in the middle of chaos, fending off rare-earth minerals shortages for parts, ever-changing tariff guidance on imported vehicles and pa...

As the industry continues to be caught in the middle of chaos, in an effort to help automakers find ways to keep affordability in check AutoPacific investigates what lower-priced vehicle shoppers really want.

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A new report just out from @autopacific.bsky.social looks at what shoppers want from the vanishing set of $25K to $35K vehicles.

Only about 5% intend to buy an #EV. BUT: When asked if they would ever CONSIDER buying an EV in the future, 49% said “Yes” + fully 70% said they were familiar with EVs.

Thanks for sharing, John!

Thanks for sharing, Chad!

New AutoPacific Survey Reveals How Tariffs May Impact New Vehicle Buyers — AutoPacific The automotive industry is entering a time of significant change due to the enactment of tariffs that will affect vehicle pricing and production, sales volumes, and more. A new survey finds that consu...

A rash of newly announced tariffs is bound to shake consumer confidence. AutoPacific recently surveyed 2,000 U.S. residents and learned 75% of respondents who said they plan to purchase a vehicle within the next year will change those plans in some way.

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Tomorrow at 8AM C.T., we'll be publishing our findings from a study that examines changing consumer confidence as it pertains to tariffs and how these tariffs may indeed alter the vehicle market.

Stay tuned.

Consumer Familiarity is Key to Demand for Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS) — AutoPacific AutoPacific’s Future Attribute Demand Study (FADS) measures consumer demand for 163 features, including 13 ADAS features such as Emergency Evasive Steering Assist and Unresponsive Driver Stop Assist. ...

With today's new vehicles arriving chock-full of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), our research team sought to gauge consumer demand, and better understand awareness of and experience with these features and how that relates to future interest.

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Is your current ride equipped with advanced safety features? Are there any you constantly rely on, cannot stand to use, or really want on your next new vehicle?

We're looking to hear your thoughts, opinions, and comments via this quick 5-minute survey:

surveys.autopacific.com/index.php/85...

Trends and Highlights from the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show (CES): What Does it all Mean for the Future of Automotive? — AutoPacific The AutoPacific team was on site at the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas to cover the latest automotive technology developments. There were clear themes that dominated automotive, and...

With #CES2025 in the rearview, our industry analysis and market research teams unpack the trends and highlights from the show. Which innovations will change the automotive scene?

We also share data related to Chinese brand familiarity amongst U.S. buyers.

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Using AutoPacific’s Data and Insights to Plan for Success in the Emerging Electric Three-Row SUV and Crossover Market — AutoPacific Even as the U.S. vehicle marketplace faces the threatening possibilities of steep tariffs on imported vehicles and the elimination of helpful federal tax credits, automakers will continue to expand th...

AutoPacific's U.S. light vehicle sales forecast predicts market share of electric SUV/XSUVs will more than double from an expected 5.8% this year to over 13% in 2029, with this segment becoming one of the most important growth segments in the EV space.

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We invite you to join AutoPacific’s survey panel, a growing group of consumers who care about vehicles and want their opinions to be heard by the people who make those vehicles. Members of our survey panel are contacted via email to participate in an eclectic mix of studies ranging from gauging interest for certain in-vehicle features to gathering first impressions on vehicle styling elements. This data is then used internally by AutoPacific and by many of our clients including leading automakers, suppliers, and marketing agencies. Surveys are issued every 1-2 months, and with each survey completion you have the chance to be entered into a drawing for gift card prizes!

Do you own a vehicle or are you planning to buy one soon? We want to hear from you!

Speak up and be heard. Your input, feedback, and suggestions can directly help shape the future of the automotive industry.

www.autopacific.com/join-our-panel

Political Influence on Electric Vehicle Interest is Waning According to AutoPacific Study — AutoPacific According to data from AutoPacific’s recent EV Consumer Insights Study, political identity is still factor in electric vehicle (EV) ownership, but it may be becoming less of a factor for future EV acc...

With a pivotal election looming on the near horizon, our latest research reveals that political influence on EV interest is actually waning amongst vehicle shoppers.

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