Elon Musk (And Tesla) Became Much Less Popular In 2025
Democrats, Republicans and independents agreed on one thing during 2025's first six months – they ... More all like the world's richest man a lot less. AFP via Getty Images
Some 55% of Americans have an unfavorable view of Musk compared to 37% who hold a positive opinion, according to a dashboard from statistician Nate Silver's Silver Bulletin aggregating hundreds of polls on Musk.
That's Musk's highest unfavorability since the tracker's inception in January 2024, and Musk's unfavorability shot up 10 percentage points over 2025's first half.
Public perception of Musk predictably soured among Democrats given Musk's highly powerful role as the top lieutenant to Trump, to whom Musk donated more than $200 million to help elect, as just 16% of Democrats hold a favorable opinion of Musk, according to a June 6-8 poll by Morning Consult, compared to 82% with an unfavorable view of the billionaire.
But Republicans' perception of Musk also soured while his tenure as Trump's chief cost-cutter ended in flames.
Two-thirds (67%) of Republicans have a favorable opinion of Musk compared to 28% favorable, according to a June 6-9 survey from The Economist/YouGov poll, down from 83% and 9% favorable and unfavorable marks in the December iteration of the survey.
Independents' views on Musk also deteriorated, as Musk went from an even 42% favorable/unfavorable split in December to a 27% to 59% favorable/unfavorable split in June, according to the Economist/YouGov survey.
Musk and Tesla are impossible to untangle – Wall Street analysts often describe the trillion-dollar company as Musk's 'child' – and the car company is off to a slow start to 2025. In the annual Axios Harris Poll 100 ranking of the U.S.' 100 most visible brands, Tesla tumbled from 63rd to 95th over the last year, and just 32% of Americans view the company favorably, according to a June poll from Associated Press/NORC surveyAssociated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Tesla's financials show clear evidence of brand damage. The company delivered 13% less vehicles to customers over 2025's first half than it did during the same period last year, as profits shrank an estimated 29% year-over-year, according to FactSet's blended forecasts of first-quarter results and consensus analyst projections for second-quarter earnings due later this month.
$280 billion. That's about how much market value Tesla lost during 2025's first half, more than six times the total valuation of Ford. Tesla stock tumbled 21% during the period. The S&P 500 gained 6% during the period, including reinvested dividends, as Tesla ranked among the 30 worst performers of the 500-stock index. Forbes Valuation
Musk remains by far the wealthiest person on Earth with a $407 billion net worth as of June 30's market close, according to our latest calculations. His fortune declined by $14 billion from where it stood at the end of 2024, as the South Africa-born Musk enjoyed boosts to the value of his stakes in his privately held companies xAI, the generative artificial intelligence startup which absorbed the social media company formerly known as Twitter in March, and SpaceX, the aerospace and satellite internet giant. Crucial Quote
'We struggle to think of anything analogous in the history of the automotive industry, in which a brand has lost so much value so quickly,' J.P. Morgan analyst Ryan Brinkman wrote in a note to clients this spring. Forbes Elon Musk Has Fired One Of His Top Tesla Lieutenants By Alan Ohnsman Forbes Tesla's Newest Nightmare Is Donald Trump By Alan Ohnsman
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