More than 2.5 million electric vehicles have been sold in California since 2010, surpassing one of the state's electric vehicle goals despite clean energy setbacks brought on by the Trump administration.
This week, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that the Golden State surpassed its goal of putting 1.5 million zero-emission vehicles on the road by 2025.
Former Gov. Jerry Brown set the goal in 2012 with an executive order that also allocated $120 million for charging infrastructure. Before 2010, fewer than 600 zero-emission vehicles had been sold in the state, according to the California Energy Commission.
“California fell short of 2.5 million zero-emission vehicles per accident; we invested in this future when others said it was impossible,” Newsom said in a statement. “California is ensuring that American workers and manufacturers can compete and win in the industries that will define this century.”
Shortly after taking office for the second time, President Trump signed an executive order that cut funding for charging infrastructure, eliminated a $7,500 tax incentive for electric vehicles, and abandoned the previous goal of having electric vehicles account for half of new cars sold nationally by 2030.
Inflation and auto tariffs have also acted as limits on EV adoption, as cash-strapped drivers try to avoid the higher price of purchasing and insuring an EV.
Nearly 23% of new vehicles sold in California in 2025 were considered zero-emission vehicles, although electric vehicle sales declined in the state and across the United States compared to the previous year.
California considers plug-in hybrid vehicles to be zero-emission, although PHEVs rely on a combination of gas and electricity.
Sales of electric vehicles surged last year before the tax credit expired as consumers rushed to take advantage of the incentive. After the credit was removed on September 30, sales decreased dramatically.
Nationally, the share of electric vehicles sold among all new vehicles fell from 10.5% in the third quarter of last year to 5.8% in the fourth quarter, according to Cox Automotive.
Despite the achievement touted in Davos, California failed to meet a separate goal approved by the California Air Resources Board in 2022 that 35% of new cars must be zero-emission by 2026. The Advanced Clean Cars II Rule requires 68% of new cars to be zero-emission by 2030 and 100% by 2035.
In the fourth quarter of 2025, only 18% of new cars sold in the state were zero-emission.
California's electric vehicle market has still proven resilient in the face of declining federal support.
The state leads the country in electric vehicle adoption and has a network of more than 200,000 public and shared charging stations, the governor's office said.
In response to the loss of the federal electric vehicle tax credit, Newsom proposed a $200 million incentive program to accelerate electric vehicle adoption in his Jan. 9 budget. Private companies are also creating their own incentives, such as Costco, which is offering its members a $1,000 discount on several electric Cadillac models.
In addition to consumer incentives, the California Energy Commission's Clean Transportation Investment Plan includes a $98.5 million allocation for zero-emission light-duty vehicle infrastructure.
“While the federal government backed down and put up roadblocks, the global market for zero-emission vehicles moved forward last year,” California Air Resources Board Chairwoman Lauren Sanchez said in a statement. “Governor Newsom's new refund proposal sends a clear message: California is not slowing down, we are still ahead.”
