As the race for Michigan’s 15 electoral votes heats up, Donald Trump is making waves with auto workers, casting doubt on Kamala Harris’s vision for electric vehicles (EVs) as a job-killer for the state’s iconic auto industry. Speaking in Detroit, Trump criticized the United Auto Workers’ leadership and Harris’s climate policies, warning that they would decimate traditional auto jobs. His comments are resonating with workers like Doug, a union machinist building EVs in Detroit who says, “It’s costing people their jobs, and it could cost me mine.”
Harris, meanwhile, has scrambled to clarify her stance, assuring Michiganders that, “I will never tell you what kind of car you have to drive.” Yet, her push for EVs remains a hurdle among blue-collar voters still loyal to traditional gas-powered vehicles. “I want it to be the way it always was,” said Ruth Zimmer, an 82-year-old Warren resident. Meanwhile, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, who joined Harris on her Michigan tour, reinforced that no mandates were on the table, saying, “It’s your choice.”
The fight over Michigan’s auto industry jobs underscores Trump’s message that electrification will lead to economic decline, despite his Tesla-endorsing ally Elon Musk. Harris, backed by pro-union endorsements and federal investments of $1.7 billion in Michigan’s EV industry, is banking on workers’ understanding of long-term benefits, but polls show a tight race.
