Centrist Dems most likely to ‘buy American’ as trend grows

Centrist and conservative Democrats are most likely to “buy American” when purchasing cars, as broader sentiments that consumers should support the domestic auto industry has grown.

“Moderate/Conservative” Democrats were most likely to only consider buying American, with 46 percent telling pollsters they would only purchase domestic cars, according to a USA Today/Gallup Poll released Wednesday. 42 percent of “Conservative Independents” said the same, and 34 percent of conservative Republicans indicated they’d only buy American.

Liberal Democrats were most likely to only consider foreign-produced cars, with 22 percent of those surveyed saying they would only buy cars from other countries.

More broadly, 37 percent of consumers said they would only consider purchasing American-manufactured cars when purchasing a new automobile, an increase from 30 percent in December, the poll found.

The number of consumers who said they would consider both domestic and foreign-produced automobiles ticked down from 52 percent to 50 percent.

The survey results come amidst a slew of continuing bad news for U.S. automakers, whose restructuring proposals and requests for additional bridge loans are currently under review by the Obama administration.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Midwestern consumers were most likely — compared to the East Coast, West, and South — to only buy American.

The poll, conducted Feb. 20-22, has a three percent margin of errors.