Michigan voters in the 2024 Presidential election ranked EV policy as one of their top concerns. This issue played a significant role in the outcome of the election, with negative messaging potentially swaying the key swing state towards Donald Trump, despite the Biden administration’s job creation efforts in Michigan.
A postmortem report by the American EV Jobs Alliance, a bipartisan group led by Republican strategist Mike Murphy, Joe Sacks, and researcher David Hill, highlighted the impact of EV-related ads in Michigan. By Election Day, over $30 million had been spent on TV ads mentioning EVs in Michigan, comprising 94% of the total spending on such ads nationwide.
Influence of EV policy on Presidential vote – American EV Jobs Alliance
The report noted that pro-Trump ads spread misinformation about Vice President Kamala Harris planning to ban internal-combustion cars if elected, which could harm Michigan’s auto-industry jobs. Democrats, on the other hand, did not effectively counter these ads, with the majority of attack ads targeting Democrats.
This negative messaging had a significant impact, as evidenced by a pre-election poll showing that a majority of Michigan voters believed that promoting more EVs would have negative implications for Michigan jobs. Additionally, many voters were misinformed about Democrats’ plans regarding gasoline vehicles.
2022 GMC Hummer EV pre-production at Factory Zero plant in Detroit, Michigan
Despite Michigan gaining thousands of new manufacturing jobs from EV investments, positive messaging about these developments was lacking in the political ads. The report emphasized that the incoming Trump administration is likely to reduce EV investments, with plans to eliminate EV incentives and subsidies for Chinese battery technology.