Electric Vehicles

In 2024, Republican Criticisms of Electric Vehicles Could Face Challenges as Swing States Experience Investment Gains

In the Arizona congressional race of 2024, Democratic candidate Engel emphasizes her opponent's votes against investments in Electric Vehicles (EVs), as Republican Representative Juan Ciscomani faces attack ads related to his opposition to the Inflation Reduction Act.

Some folks running for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, like former President Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, are saying electric vehicles (EVs) are a “hoax,” claiming they don’t work and that they’re helping China’s economy at the expense of American jobs.

While these criticisms are making the rounds on the campaign trail, EVs are turning into a significant source of tax revenue and jobs in the states that will play a key role in deciding the 2024 presidential winner.

This shift hasn’t gone unnoticed. President Joe Biden and certain Democratic congressional candidates see it as a chance to gain support before the vote next November. Insights from 25 Democratic and Republican strategists, local officials, and labor leaders, along with a review of campaign literature, suggest there’s growing awareness of the positive impact of EVs on state economies.

Since the 2022 passage of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), approximately $128 billion in investments in domestic EV and battery manufacturing have been announced. This law, backed by Biden and congressional Democrats, introduced tax credits to boost domestic EV manufacturing.

Since the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) was passed in 2022, there’s been around $128 billion in investments in domestic electric vehicle (EV) and battery manufacturing. The IRA, backed by Biden and congressional Democrats, introduced tax credits to give a boost to domestic EV manufacturing.

Out of this investment, about $48 billion, or one-third, has happened in Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, and Michigan, according to an analysis by advocacy group Climate Power as per Reuters’ request. These four states, along with Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina, are arguably the most competitive in the country.

In these seven states combined, Trump has a 41% to 35% lead over Biden, making the race extremely close when considering the credibility interval. Around 24% of respondents are undecided or planning to vote for someone else.

Other surveys also show a tight race in some of these states, making both Democrats and Republicans keen on any advantage they can find. Mike Morey, a partner at public affairs and political consulting firm SKDK, believes that EV investments pushed by the Biden administration could have a significant impact.

“It’s pretty significant; we’re talking about billions of dollars in investments,” he remarked.

According to him, the crucial strategy for Democrats is to highlight how Democratic legislation has generated jobs, rather than solely emphasizing electric vehicles.

“You just need to sell jobs to independents and the rest of the country,” he suggested. “The point is that they’re manufacturing jobs, whether they be baskets or batteries.”

Currently, Trump is ahead in the race for the 2024 Republican nomination by a substantial margin. Biden has been showcasing the benefits of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in recent TV ads and has visited a couple of manufacturing facilities since August that are involved in the production of EVs and charging stations.

Clean Energy for America, a group with ties to Democrats, is airing advertisements in Michigan, Georgia, and North Carolina. These ads showcase workers sharing the positive impacts of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), as mentioned by the executive director, Andrew Reagan.

Kirsten Engel, a Democratic candidate in a sunny southern Arizona district surrounded by electric vehicle (EV) facilities, shared her intention to talk extensively about how Democratic legislation has brought EV jobs to the area. She noted that this topic has already emerged in early conversations with voters, emphasizing, “It’s a top issue in the campaign.”

Since 2015, over $165 billion has been invested in the American electric vehicle (EV) and battery supply chain, with the majority occurring in the first year of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), as reported by the Environmental Defense Fund and consulting firm WSP.

The IRA provides tax credits to buyers of EVs assembled in North America and encourages clean energy initiatives such as solar and wind farms. This aligns with the broader strategy of the Biden administration to combat climate change.

Several factors, including affordable land, low power costs, local tax incentives, and robust infrastructure, have attracted these projects to states that happen to be key political battlegrounds.

While recent increases in interest rates have slowed down demand for EVs, causing some manufacturers to scale back expansion plans, domestic EV sales remain robust, surpassing 300,000 units for the first time in the third quarter. Projections by the non-profit RMI suggest that EVs will constitute nearly 50% of car sales in America by 2030.

In certain communities where electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing has left its mark, it’s challenging to find a Republican who disapproves of the local growth in the industry, even if they have reservations about the technology itself.

Jesse Williams, the head of the Republican Party in Decatur County, Georgia, humorously remarked, “I don’t know if I’ll go around on a lithium battery, so if I’m in a wreck I burn in a big blue plasma beam.” Despite this, he fully supports the construction of an $800 million EV battery plant in his community and is comfortable with tax credits that contribute to bringing the plant to what he describes as a “low-income” area.

On the national stage, Republicans in the presidential campaign have taken a different stance. They emphasize concerns about government overreach with IRA subsidies and express worries about crucial minerals for EV manufacturing, such as graphite and manganese, often originating in China.

Notably, figures like Trump and other Republicans, who generally support traditional energy sources like oil and coal along with gasoline-powered vehicles, have also appealed to the concerns of the United Auto Workers union.

Many UAW members are cautious about electric vehicles (EVs) because they require less labor to assemble compared to traditional combustion engine vehicles. While the UAW has a strong presence in Michigan, it’s not as influential in the South and Southwest.

Anna Kelly, the press secretary for the Republican National Committee, criticized Joe Biden’s focus on electric vehicles, stating, “Joe Biden’s electric vehicle obsession helps China, hurts American consumers and families, and is a pathetic non-solution to skyrocketing gas prices under his watch.”

A spokesperson for Trump highlighted a recent policy announcement where the former president expressed concerns that EV manufacturing would harm workers. Trump strongly stated, “What’s happening to our auto workers is an absolute disgrace and an outrage beyond belief.”

The DeSantis campaign did not provide a comment, but the Florida governor has consistently voiced criticism of EVs. In July, DeSantis questioned the wisdom of making the country more dependent on China, saying, “Why would you want to knowingly make this country more dependent on what goes on in China?”

Biden’s team referred Reuters to a statement from Kevin Munoz, a campaign spokesman, who argued that Trump’s plan would lead to more Chinese EV manufacturing jobs and fewer jobs for Americans.

“Simply put: Trump had the United States losing the EV race to China, and if he had his way, the jobs of the future would be going to China,” Munoz emphasized.

Some elected Republicans at the state level are taking a more nuanced approach to electric vehicles (EVs), adding complexity to Democrats’ messaging efforts.

Brian Kemp, Georgia’s Republican governor and a Trump opponent, is against the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). However, he has highlighted state-level tax credits that attracted EV manufacturers to Georgia, expressing his desire for the state to become the “electric mobility capital” of America.

This means Democrats will have to put in extra effort to showcase the role their legislation played in the development of EVs in the state, noted Wendy Davis, a Democrat from Rome, Georgia, who has held various local positions.

Engel, the Democratic candidate for Congress in Arizona, is gearing up for a showdown with Republican Representative Juan Ciscomani in 2024. In recent months, attack ads criticizing Ciscomani’s stance against the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) have been sponsored by Climate Power and the League of Conservation Voters.

Despite this, Ciscomani, who hasn’t responded to requests for comments, has generally been supportive of individual electric vehicle (EV) projects and even toured a local EV plant in August.

“We will be discussing my opponent’s votes against these investments,” emphasized Engel.

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