Tesla Faces Boycott Call In Poland Over Musk's WWII Comments: 'No Normal Pole Should Buy'

Tesla Faces Polish Boycott Call Over Musk's Remarks: ‘No Normal Pole Should Buy'

A Polish government official is calling for a boycott of Tesla Inc TSLA vehicles in the country after recent comments made by CEO Elon Musk at a rally for German far-right Alternative for Germany party.

What Happened: Musk made a surprise virtual appearance at the Alternative for Germany rally Saturday, continuing his support for the party ahead of Germany's Feb. 23 election.

During his appearance, Musk downplayed the importance of moving on from Germany’s past, potentially referencing the Nazi party and World War II.

"Children should not be guilty of the sins of their parents, let alone their great-grandparents," Musk said, as reported by Bloomberg.

Musk said there is a "too much focus on past guilt" during his virtual appearance.

The billionaire's comments upset Polish Sports and Tourism Minister Slawomir Nitras, who serves under the ruling Civic Platform party.

"Maybe Mr. Musk with his billions doesn't feel threatened. But every normal person living in the center of Europe, who remembers what happened eighty years ago, cannot look on indifferently," Nitras said during a radio interview.

Nitras' comments came as Poland recognizes the 80^th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp on Monday. Millions of Polish people, including many Jewish people, died in Poland at the hands of the Nazi party, with over 1 million people killed at Auschwitz.

"All I can say is that probably no normal Pole should buy a Tesla anymore," Nitras added.

Why It's Important: Tesla is the most popular electric vehicle company in Poland with 4,460 units sold in 2024, according to the report. Mercedes-Benz (1,640), Volvo (1,260), BMW (1,240) and Audi (1,020) round out the top five EV sellers in the country.

Poland launched electric vehicles government subsidies of up to $9,958 last year to help boost electric vehicle purchases, a plan that may have benefitted Tesla.

Tesla has five showrooms and 15 Tesla Supercharger locations in Poland according to the report.

The call to ban Tesla vehicles in Poland comes as recent reports show Musk's deeper push into politics in recent years could be hurting the electric vehicle company.

Tesla fell to 36^th place, down from 18^th place, in the 2025 global brand rankings from Brand Finance. The annual report showed Tesla having a brand value of $43 billion in the 2025 rankings, down 26% from $58.27 billion in 2024.

“There are people who think he’s wonderful, but many that don’t,” Brand Finance CEO David Haigh told CNBC of Musk. “If you are buying electric vehicles, his persona is highly likely to impact your view of whether or not you want to buy one of his company’s cars, but that’s only one of many factors.”

Tesla's scores in categories such as “reputation,” “recommendation” and “consideration” all fell from the prior year.

Benzinga previously reported that some angry Tesla customers who don’t agree with Musk’s political push are buying bumper stickers with phrases such as “I bought this before we knew Elon was crazy.”

A survey of Tesla owners in the Netherlands showed around one-third were considering selling their car, with Musk one of the main reasons.

The survey conducted by Dutch news outlet EenVandaag and shared by InsideEVs showed Tesla owners who thought Musk’s actions were making them reconsider their brand loyalty.

“If I had known what he is like now, I would have never bought a Tesla,” one Tesla owner said in the survey.

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