The deliveries of Tesla vehicles fell sharply by 13% in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period in 2024, caused primarily by CEO Elon Musk’s recent moves in the political arena.

Car industry analysts said that Musk discounted the impact of his moves at DOGE and his right-wing leanings on his company.

“Musk thinks he can say anything he wants to and doesn’t think Tesla will suffer any consequences,“ said Morningstar analyst Seth Goldstein as quoted by the Associated Press. “Tesla was in the sweet spot. Now it has competition.”

The number of vehicles delivered by the US electric vehicle (EV) firm during the said period went down to 336,681 from 386,810 in the first quarter last year, which is below market expectation of between 360,000 and 370,000.

The company produced 362,615 vehicles in the first quarter of this year, a drop from the 433,371 vehicles in the same period of 2024.

Contributing largely to the drop was Europe, where sales of Tesla fell 49% in the first two months of the year, with Musk supporting a reported neo-Nazi group in Germany a big factor.

Sales of sales also declined in China, a country that is preparing for a trade war with US as President Donald Trump is preparing to impose new tariffs globally.

Musk, who supported Trump during the election campaign, was appointed head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) right after Trump won the presidential race. DOGE has made drastic moves to cut costs in the US bureaucracy, resulting in the dismissal of thousands of federal employees.

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