Editorial Note: Opinions and thoughts are the author’s own and not those of AFROTECH™.

Elon Musk and his DOGE agency continue to make cuts and layoffs across the federal government despite voter’s outspoken opposition. They’ve taken their frustration out on Musk’s electric car company, Tesla, by boycotting the brand.

Voters across the country have been attending town halls with both Republican and Democratic leaders to voice their concerns about Musk’s involvement in the federal government as an unelected official. Hundreds of thousands of federal employees have been laid off as a result of DOGE cuts, with several thousand being reinstated as a result of an order from a federal judge.

For the past few weeks, protestors have been throwing eggs and vandalizing Tesla cars—especially the cyber truck, which has been ridiculed for its unfinished, robotic appearance. They’ve set fire to Tesla service centers and announced a general boycott of the company. The boycott isn’t just a domestic issue. In Germany, over 94% of Germans say they will not purchase a Tesla after Musk embraced the far-right party in their last election.

Several years ago, owning a Tesla car was a symbol of status. Environmentally conscious consumers, the majority of LA residents, and self-proclaimed liberals were their primary audience. Trump’s MAGA cult, who hate coastal elites and deny the existence of climate change, weren’t clamoring to buy Tesla cars. Now that Musk has alienated his main consumer base with his political involvement, Tesla stocks have been on a downward trend, and car sales have declined. But Tesla’s troubles aren’t that recent. Even just a few years ago, Tesla was accused of workplace violations and shoddy construction of its cars. In 2021, Consumer Reports rated Tesla’s overall reliability as the 27th worst car out of 28 car brands, and that rating hasn’t changed after four years.

Tesla board members are worried that Musk’s attention to politics is hurting the brand. Despite the boycotts and fires, a few of Musk’s fans will purchase the $35,000 cars to please him, but Tesla, the environmentally friendly electric car we once knew, is no longer.

Last week, Trump became a Tesla spokesperson, advertising the Tesla vehicles in front of the White House and calling the Tesla boycott “illegal.” Just recently, Attorney General Pam Boni said the Tesla fires were akin to domestic terrorism. With Musk’s influence, they want to criminalize boycotts and force hard-working Americans to purchase an expensive car that isn’t manufactured well.

Much of Musk’s wealth is closely tied to Tesla stocks, despite his ownership of other companies like Space X and X (formerly known as Twitter). The latter is nowhere near making a profit after Musk spent a reported $44 billion to buy it, as CNN noted. Protestors who disagree with the Trump administration, especially Musk’s involvement with DOGE, could see the Tesla boycott as the most direct way to express their anger by hitting his pockets.