Tesla's brand image has taken a hit following Elon Musk's purchase of Twitter, with Democrats particularly souring on the electric car company, according to long-running surveys compiled by research firm Morning Consult, reports The Wall Street Journal.
Musk, the world's richest man, purchased Twitter for $44 billion in late October.
He now wields significant influence in shaping the rules of online public debate and has used his platform to urge independent-minded voters to vote for Republicans. He revealed last week that he would vote for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis if he runs for president in 2024 and has frequently trolled Democrats on Twitter, claiming attacks from politicians on the left were "coordinated."
"Outside of party leadership and independents like (Sen. Joe) Manchin, they are essentially actors on the political stage, not directors or script writers," he tweeted Tuesday.
Musk also reinstated former President Donald Trump's Twitter account and on Nov. 7 urged voters to back Republicans in the midterm elections.
According to YouGov, a U.K.-based market-research company that runs daily surveys about thousands of brands, Tesla's reputation in the U.S. has declined significantly since 2016 when YouGov started tracking the carmaker.
Morning Consult found that more people hold a negative view of Tesla compared with early 2022 — roughly 22% of about 200 people surveyed each day this month through Nov. 27 had a negative impression of the company, compared with 15% in January.
Among self-described Democrats, Tesla's net favorability in the U.S. fell to an average of 10.4% through Nov. 27, compared with 24.8% in October. It rose among self-described Republicans, from 20% to 26.5%, during the same period.
YouGov found similar results — self-described Dems now view Tesla more negatively than conservatives, though Republicans also have a negative view on the brand.
"It seems like Tesla is on its way to becoming a partisan brand," said Jordan Marlatt, tech analyst at Morning Consult.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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