A working study by a group of researchers claims that Elon Musk's politics cost Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) over 1 million sales in the U.S.
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Elon Musk's Polarizing Actions Had A Dramatic Effect On Tesla Sales
In a new working research paper released by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), a group of researchers shared their findings, saying that Musk's right-wing political activities impacted Tesla sales. "Our primary result is that Elon Musk's polarizing and partisan actions had a dramatic effect on Tesla sales," the researchers in the paper said.
They added that when the effects were aggregated between October 2022 to April 2025, Tesla lost up to 1.26 million unit sales due to Musk's politics, which the researchers say equals "between 67% and 83% of the actual number of Teslas sold over the same period." The billionaire's politics also increased sales for competitors by "17% and 22%" when aggregated back to October 2022.
Elon Musk’s Involvement With The Trump Camp
It's worth noting that Musk has been a vocal proponent of right-wing political views and reportedly contributed over $250 million to President Donald Trump's campaign in the run-up to the 2024 Presidential Election. Musk was also a close ally of Trump and headed the DOGE, a non-governmental body tasked with minimizing excess federal spending.
Musk eventually cut down on his involvement with the Trump administration amid souring relations with the Trump administration over the axing of the Federal EV Credit and other anti-EV policies, one of which cost Tesla billions in revenue, among other things.
Zohran Mamdani, Bernie Sanders Criticize Tesla And Musk
New York Mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani recently criticized Tesla board member and Airbnb Inc. (NASDAQ:ABNB) co-founder Joe Gebbia, accusing him of promoting "racist" messages targeting immigrants. Gebbia also reportedly donated over $2 million to anti-Mamdani Political Action Committees (PACs).
Meanwhile, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) criticized Musk over his support of Trump, which helped Musk become “$186 billion richer.” He had also voiced his criticism of Musk's trillion-dollar pay package, calling it "grossly" immoral.
It's worth noting that Musk's new pay packet has garnered a mixed response from the market, with support from shareholders and industry experts like Cathie Wood, CEO of ARK Invest, but also criticism from investors like Gerber Kawasaki's co-founder Ross Gerber.
Tesla Model Y Emerges As Best-Seller In Europe
Elsewhere, the Tesla Model Y has emerged as the best-selling vehicle in the European market for September 2025, selling 25,938 units in the market during that time period.
Model Y's strong September performance coincides with Tesla's declining sales in Europe, with authorities in Italy reporting that the company's sales fell over 25% in the country.
Tesla scores well on Momentum and Quality metrics, while offering satisfactory Growth, but poor Value. Tesla also has a favorable price trend in the Short, Medium and Long term. For more such insights, sign up for Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings today!
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