Biden's policies have helped Americans buy electric vehicles in record numbers, but as a result of the presidential election, EV owners may miss out on some of the benefits they were promised.
Electric vehicles are in the spotlight in the 2024 presidential election, with the fast-growing industry becoming a divisive issue among voters.
President Joe Biden has pledged to inject billions of dollars in federal funding into the U.S. auto industry, with a goal of having half of new car sales be electric by 2030. Washington, D.C., joined 12 other states in passing even higher standards, mandating in January that all vehicles be “clean and zero-emission” by 2035.
Americans appear to be following suit, buying millions of EVs last year, a record number, according to the National Automobile Dealers Association. Five years ago, Americans bought just 207,000 EVs, according to the Department of Transportation.
But with American EV ownership on the rise and thousands of new EVs poised to hit the market this year, former President Donald Trump has harshly criticized Biden's policies, describing them as an economic “catastrophe” that would “kill” the U.S. auto industry. Trump has vowed to block Biden's rapid transition to EVs if elected.
Now, EV owners in the District face an uncertain future, as access to electric vehicle charging stations, manufacturing and the expansion of some tax credits could hinge on the outcome of November's election.
Martha Hudson was among the many people who bought American EVs last year, attracted by a federal tax credit of up to $7,500.
“Electric vehicles play a key role in making DC a greener city,” Hudson said. “I wanted to do my part, but in the end it was taxes that made me decide.”
Jonathan Craig has owned an EV since 2021. He said he has seen an increase in EV ownership over the past few years as electric vehicles have gotten cheaper and charging stations have become more popular.
“We went from seeing a few on the road to praying there was an open charging station in your garage,” Craig said.
In the United States, the number of EV owners is growing at a faster pace than the development of domestic infrastructure, so the availability of charging stations has been one of the hurdles when considering purchasing an EV.
In 2020, there was one public charger for every seven EVs in the US, according to the International Energy Agency. Now it's one for every 20, but the Biden administration has said it plans to triple the number of charging stations by 2026.
“I took all of these new policies and promises into consideration when I was buying a car,” Hudson said. “If this all gets turned upside down, I think a lot of new buyers, including me, will be upset.”
The Trump campaign has focused on EVs as a key issue in key battleground states that are the heart of the auto industry. During his keynote speech at the Libertarian National Convention on Saturday, an unprecedented and ultimately unsuccessful battle for the party's support, Trump said he would “cancel” Biden's EV policies if elected.
“This will end Bad Joe's insane electric vehicle mandate,” Trump said. “We're going to 'dig, dig, dig.'”
Even if elected, Trump cannot unilaterally overturn congressional policies like the Beat Inflation Act of 2022, which provides tax credits for eligible EV purchases and charging station installations, but he can try to roll back federal targets for EVs, public infrastructure funding and incentives outlined in Biden's “Invest in America Agenda and Biden Economics.”
Hudson bought the car in anticipation of an increase in charging stations and a national switch to electric vehicles, but says the future of EV ownership is uncertain.
“Hopefully, electric cars will become cheaper and easier to drive,” Hudson says, “but until then, we'll just have to wait and see.”
