Fuel costs are brutalizing Trump’s fans in these red states: report

A person attends the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) USA 2026 at the Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center, in Grapevine, Texas, U.S., March 27, 2026. REUTERS Daniel Cole

While gas prices have gone up across the country, three red states are feeling especially severe pain at the pump. As the Phoenix New Times reports, Arizona, Utah, and Wyoming have experienced the highest increases in annual average fuel expenditures since President Donald Trump’s war drove up oil costs. All three states went to Trump by sizeable margins in the 2024 election.

As the Phoenix New Times writes, “According to a study by iSeeCars, annual fuel costs rose by $963 in Arizona between January and April of this year, from $1,678 to $2,641. Only two states — Wyoming and Utah — experienced bigger spikes. Sometimes it’s great to get the bronze medal. This is not one of those cases.”

Wyoming saw the highest annual fuel cost hikes — $1,209 over the same four-month period. Utah was next with a $967 jump. And as the New Times points out, a number of blue states frequently criticized by Trump saw the lowest increase.

“Meanwhile, lucky New Yorkers came in last and are paying only $487 more in gas,” notes the New Times. “Arizona is spending nearly twice as much!”

According to the Times, “The automotive search engine site analyzed data for over 2.1 million 3-year-old used vehicles sold in 2025. It used the average annual odometer reading for each car by state and AAA average fuel cost data from January 2026 and April 2026 — a period that coincides with the Trump administration starting a war with Iran that has shocked global fuel prices — to calculate cost increases and rank the states.”

Trump's biggest fans with the biggest cars caught the real pain, however. The same study showed that drivers of large vehicles like trucks and SUVs are paying the highest price increases regardless of which state they’re in.

As the Times explains, “In Arizona, the gas-guzzlingest vehicle is the Nissan Armada. Armada drivers, who the study says average 18,479 miles per year, are spending $2,004 more on fuel this year. That’s more than twice the amount of the average fuel cost increase in the state and the fifth-highest fuel cost increase in the nation. Toyota Sequoia drivers in Tennessee took the cake with an annual fuel cost increase of $2,190.”

This will have impacted Trump voters in particular, as market analysis shows that his base overwhelmingly buys trucks and big SUVs, whereas Democrats tend to drive cars and smaller SUVs.

While gas prices have decreased by roughly 14 percent since it was (most recently) announced that the peace deal would reopen the Strait of Hormuz, they still remain high above their pre-war costs. And while experts say that they are likely to continue dropping as long as the peace holds, they also warn that the decline is expected to slow, and that prices may remain elevated as countries buy to replenish diminished stores and summer travel drives up demand.

And as a final peace agreement is yet to be reached, analysts say it’s too early to tell if the conflict will resume and oil prices will once again take a hit.

"The outlook is far from settled," said Patrick De Haan of GasBuddy, suggesting that renewed problems in the strait "could push oil prices higher in the days ahead.”

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