Electric vehicle market stalls in Washington state as Tesla sales plunge

Electric-vehicle sales in Washington state are stuck in neutral and might even be going in reverse, according to data from the Washington Department of Licensing.

The market share of electric vehicles had been climbing for years, with some monthly fluctuations, until they peaked at 27% of all new car and truck sales in Washington in September.

The climate-friendly vehicles’ market share in the state had risen from 4% in 2019 to 18% in 2023.

RELATED: Tesla's quarterly sales fall 13%. Experts blame Musk

Washington state and, under the Biden administration, the federal government have pushed to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles to fight climate change. Reducing the number of cars and trucks that burn gasoline remains the centerpiece of the state’s efforts to slash climate-harming pollution.

A state-funded rebate program helped boost EVs to new highs in September. The Washington Department of Commerce made the instant rebates available on Aug. 1 and used up the available funding by Oct. 22 after helping 6,000 people switch from gasoline- to electric-powered driving.

After peaking in September, electric vehicles’ share of the new-car market in Washington hovered around 22%, more than twice the national average, according to the Alliance for Automotive Innovation. It stayed in that range through January. Then it dropped to 19% in February.

That's when protesters began weekly demonstrations outside Tesla dealerships across the country.

RELATED: Expert says Tesla's best way to rebuild its brand is to ditch Musk

In the Seattle area, an activist group called Troublemakers has been organizing weekly protests at six Tesla showrooms from Lynnwood to Fife.

“At least being in front of Tesla we could hopefully impact their profits because that's all they care about,” protester Jake Harris of Seattle said outside the University Village Tesla dealership in February.

That month, sales of Teslas, by far the dominant electric car brand in Washington, plunged 48% from January. Sales dropped 35% compared to February 2024, according to Department of Licensing data.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, has become a lightning rod for anger against the Trump administration’s rapid dismantling of multiple federal agencies. Musk has been overseeing the indiscriminate and possibly illegal firing of thousands of federal employees.

Under Trump and Musk, federal support for electric vehicles and charging infrastructure has evaporated. Trade wars launched by Trump are poised to boost vehicle prices.

Trump’s tariffs on imported cars of all kinds could give drivers incentive to hold on to their gas guzzlers longer. Even cars that are “Made in the U.S.A.” typically have components manufactured elsewhere and subject to Trump’s import taxes.

RELATED: Trump's new tariffs on imported cars could have a clear winner: Tesla

Under state law, one in every three new cars sold in Washington must run on electricity or hydrogen by model year 2026. The clean-vehicle requirements ramp up yearly, from 35% of market share in 2026 to 100% in 2035.

Automakers can apply credits from previous years’ clean-vehicle sales to meet those requirements.

“Based on sales in 2024 and 2025, Washington state will fall far short of the required 2026 goal,” Todd Myers with the conservative Washington Policy Center said in an emailed statement. “The result could be increased costs for new cars or that buyers go to states like Idaho without the requirement.”

Though electric-vehicles’ market share has fallen since September, state officials say manufacturers will be able to meet their 2026 requirement by applying credits from earlier years.

“Just looking at 2023 numbers, they already have nearly 200,000 credits that they can use to comply, which should be more than enough,” Washington Department of Ecology spokesperson Caroline Halter said by email. “They’ll have even more with 2024 and 2025 sales.”

Washington Department of Commerce officials declined to be interviewed. But in an email, spokesperson Ellen Yoffee said it was too soon to say how the electric-vehicle market will play out in 2025.

“Despite headwinds, there are strong indicators for continued growth: thousands of new charging ports becoming available this year and next year from state grants, lower ownership costs for EVs over gas cars, and improved customer satisfaction with new EV models,” Yoffee wrote.

Globally, deliveries of Tesla vehicles fell steeply in the first three months of 2025, down 13% from the year before, the company announced Wednesday.

Harris said protesting at Tesla showrooms does sometimes have “a Catch-22 vibe” for the Troublemakers, which began as a group fighting climate change.

“Which do you prioritize stopping: climate change or oligarchy?” he said. “Luckily, Tesla is not the only green car provider.”

RELATED: 3 people face federal charges for Tesla attacks. Are such acts domestic terrorism?

Tesla's market share has cratered in Europe and elsewhere as Trump administration foreign policy moves have turned longstanding allies into wary enemies.

"Never has a car brand suffered such a global fall from grace," British electric-vehicle campaigner and Tesla owner Quentin Willson told Reuters.

Correction notice, Wednesday 04/08/2025 at 1:30 p.m.: An earlier version of this story mischaracterized Washington state’s clean-vehicle requirements for 2026.