(Reuters) -Tesla’s electric vehicle registrations in California fell 21.1% in the second quarter, according to industry data, marking the seventh consecutive quarterly drop in the crucial U.S. market.
The automaker’s plunging vehicle registrations come as CEO Elon Musk’s polarizing political activity puts him at odds with the liberal values dominant in the state, which has long been one of Tesla’s key markets.
Billionaire Musk announced the formation of the America Party earlier this month in the wake of his public and acrimonious fallouts with President Donald Trump.
Musk’s political activity has sparked investor concerns that his latest foray into U.S. politics would distract from Tesla’s operations.
In the April-June period, the Texas-based automaker recorded 41,138 registrations in the state, down from 52,119 units in the same period of 2024, according to data from the California New Car Dealers Association.
“Seven appears unlucky for Tesla, as this is the most recent number of quarterly registration declines reported in the state,” the CNCDA said in a statement.
Tesla, which will report quarterly results after markets close on Wednesday, did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Earlier this year, the company shut down production for several weeks to refresh its best-selling Model Y, and cheaper variants of the vehicle have been on sale in the second quarter.
Still, the crossover and the Model 3 sedan were the top two vehicles in the zero-emission and hybrid category sold this year through June in California.
Globally, Tesla’s deliveries fell 13.5% in the second quarter, setting it up for another year of shrinking sales.
But sales of hybrid vehicles were catching up, the industry body said, with registrations increasing 54% in the first half of the year, accounting for 19.2% of the market.
The company recorded registrations of 3,622 units of the Cybertruck electric pickup in the state during the first half of the year, the CNCDA said.
Meanwhile, Rivian, which makes the R1T pickup truck and the R1S SUV, saw a 28.6% second-quarter decline in the state.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid and Alan Barona)
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