President Biden has made the adoption of electric vehicles a key pillar of his green agenda, and while he has bet big on phasing out gas-powered vehicles, it is unclear whether the push will help him among voters in his re-election campaign against former President Trump.
According to a new survey of Americans conducted by car insurance app Jerry, Republicans are slightly more motivated to vote due to EV policies, with 39% saying the issue will be a factor in determining who they vote for in the 2024 presidential election, compared with 32% of Democrats.
The study found that while Democrats were twice as likely to say they would consider an EV as their next vehicle at 48% compared to 22% of Republicans, a majority (53%) of Democrats who said they are not willing to buy an electric car said they want to stick with gas-powered vehicles because they "grew up with them."
"Our survey shows a surprising nostalgia for gas-powered cars among many Democrats, despite their progressive stance on other issues, and many Republicans see EVs as ‘un-American,’" said Henry Hoenig, data journalist at Jerry.
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"Along with practical concerns such as price and charging, this cultural resistance helps explain why a majority of Americans still aren’t interested in an EV as their next vehicle and why they may be difficult to win over, regardless of party."
The study also found Republicans are far more skeptical than Democrats about America’s ability to manage a transition to full EV adoption.
Only 20% of Republicans said they thought the U.S. could build the necessary infrastructure by 2032 to make EV ownership as convenient as owning a gas-powered car, compared to 53% of Democrats. And only 28% of Republicans said they thought American carmakers would become global leaders in the EV market, compared to 58% of Democrats.
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Hoenig said the Biden administration’s new emissions rules, which effectively require that nearly all vehicles must be EVs by 2032, could be an issue for some voters.
A majority of Republicans surveyed told pollsters they were either unhappy (36%) or angry (28%) about the new rules, compared to only 14% of Democrats (10% unhappy and 4% angry). But the dissenters in both parties largely agreed on why.
Among Democrats who were unhappy or angry, two-thirds (67%) said the rules amounted to an unacceptable limit on their personal freedom, and 95% of GOP voters said the same.
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"Republicans are especially unhappy about the pending loss of personal choice as consumers, and a majority think the EPA mandate will result in a flood of Chinese-brand EVs into the U.S. market, costing thousands of American jobs," Hoenig told FOX Business.
"While there are few real swing voters these days, some Republicans who may have been open to voting for Biden may decide against it as a result if Republicans can exploit the issue effectively."
