PPI - Radically Pragmatic
  • Donate
Skip to content
  • Home
  • About
    • About Us
    • Locations
    • Careers
  • People
  • Projects
  • Our Work
  • Events
  • Donate

Our Work

Electric cars are the future. Here’s how to get American drivers interested in them.

  • February 23, 2021
  • Paul Bledsoe

Major electric vehicle announcements by President Joe Biden and General Motors are being hailed as a turning point in the transition to widespread EV production and deployment in America. This matters greatly, because this crucial technology can both jump-start U.S. manufacturing to ease the economic and jobs crisis, and rapidly reduce emissions that cause climate change.

But there are still serious barriers to EVs. By far the biggest is the lack of American consumer demand for electric vehicles.

EVs, including plug-in electric hybrids, accounted for less than 2% of new U.S. vehicles sold in 2019.

This number is far lower than in other major markets, especially China, which has triple U.S. production and deployment volume.

Just as worrisome, only 14% of Americans say they are considering buying an EV, compared with 73% of Chinese motorists.

Read the full piece here.

Related Work

Press Release  |  April 2, 2026

PPI Statement on the Firing of Attorney General Pam Bondi

  • Will Marshall
In the News  |  March 31, 2026

Marshall in The New York Times: It’s Not Going to Get Any Easier for Democrats After Trump

  • Will Marshall
Op-Ed  |  March 27, 2026

Marshall for The Hill: Bashing Billionaires Isn’t Helping Progressives Win the Working Class

  • Will Marshall
Press Release  |  March 24, 2026

After Early Emissions Gains, Pennsylvania Faces Tough Tradeoffs on Climate, Cost and Reliability, PPI Finds

  • Neel Brown John Kemp
Publication  |  March 24, 2026

Pennsylvania’s Energy Crossroads: Charting a Pragmatic Path to Decarbonization

  • Neel Brown John Kemp
Op-Ed  |  March 13, 2026

Marshall for The Hill: Both Trump and Progressives Are Foggy on Iran

  • Will Marshall
  • Never miss an update:

  • Subscribe to our newsletter
PPI Logo
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Donate
  • Careers
  • © 2026 Progressive Policy Institute. All Rights Reserved.
  • |
  • Privacy Policy
  • |
  • Privacy Settings