Vice President Kamala Harris’ support for electric vehicles (EVs) could prove to be costly to her chances in the critical swing state of Michigan.
“With Republicans beginning to embrace unions and labor, we are seeing a dramatic shift in voting behavior in Rust Belt States,” Jimmy Keady, the founder and president of JLK Political Strategies, told Fox News Digital.
The comments come as the outlook for former President Donald Trump in Michigan has continued to improve in recent weeks, with Trump now holding a narrow lead of 0.9 points in the state, according to the Real Clear Politics polling average.
That lead represents a roughly three-point swing in the race since the end of August, when Harris held a 2.2-point lead over the former president, according to the historic view of the polling average.
Michigan is rated a tossup state in the presidential race in the current Fox News Power Rankings.
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Vice President Kamala Harris (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)
Part of the reason for Trump’s recent surge in the state could be due to the support of working class and union voters, who worry that the push towards EVs could put many of them out of jobs in the not-so-distant future.
“I think it is hurting Harris because of the Biden-Harris agenda on policies that don’t work for the working class,” Michael Markey, a former Republican Michigan Congressional candidate and financial adviser, told Fox News Digital.
The Trump campaign has leaned into the narrative, releasing an ad earlier this month that warned Michigan voters about Democratic support for EVs.
“Attention autoworkers: Kamala Harris wants to end all gas powered cars,” the ad said. “Crazy, but true!”
Markey believes the message is hitting home for voters in Michigan, arguing the issue is one reason Trump and the GOP have gained ground in the state.
“It’s a slap in the face to the union workers,” he said. “I think that’s why we’re seeing a lot of the polling trending in Republicans favor right now.”
For her part, Harris has attempted to push back against the narrative, arguing at a rally in Flint, Michigan, earlier this month that we would “never” mandate the “kind of car you have to drive.”
Former President Trump speaks during a rally on Sept. 18, 2024 in Uniondale, New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
Nevertheless, Republicans have continued to hammer Harris both for her support of Biden administration regulations on tailpipe emissions, a push to phase-in EVs for newly built cars and heavy subsidies for EV production in the United States. They have also pointed to Harris’ plan during her 2020 run for president to transition all new vehicles built in the U.S. to zero emissions by 2030.
“They’re saying… ‘no one’s going to force you or tell you what kind of car you can drive,’ but they’re putting standards through the EPA that are basically mandating EV production,” Markey said.
Markey argued that Michigan workers have a long history of being at the cutting edge of the automotive industry and do not want to see jobs lost to a product that is neither profitable nor in demand by consumers.
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“The public is telling us what the next generation of cars is,” Markey said. “They still want internal combustion engines, they want hybrids, but EVs… that’s not where the public is.”
That could all add up to a problem in places like Michigan for Harris, Keady argued, noting the Democratic candidate’s struggles with traditional blue voting blocs such as unions.
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks to the media before boarding Air Force Two after assessing the Hurricane Helene recovery response on Oct. 5, 2024, in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
“The Teamsters refusal to endorse is sign number one that Harris is in trouble with union workers,” Keady said. “It is not just the Biden-Harris administration’s manufacturing policies that are hurting Michigan workers; their embrace of electric vehicle mandates will add an undue burden on middle-class families.”
Reached for comment, a Harris campaign spokesperson referred Fox News Digital to the vice president’s most recent comments on the issue at the Flint rally.
“And, Michigan let us be clear, contrary to what my opponent is suggesting I will never tell you what kind of car you have to drive,” Harris said at the time. “But here’s what I will do: I will invest in communities like Flint, which helped build the auto industry and the UAW. We will retool existing factories, hire locally, and work with unions to create good paying jobs, including jobs that do not require a college degree”
