A major remains of climate change Platform issues for DemocratsBut you’d hardly know it while listening to speeches at the Democratic National Convention last week in Chicago.
Vice President Kamala Harris, accepting her party’s nomination for president, gave a brief nod to basic freedoms “to be free from the fuel pollution of the climate crisis.”
Yet even after the hottest year on record and a wave of disasters followed Worsened by rising average temperaturesClimate Change has received just a few passing references from one to one A handful on the main stage.
This is in stark contrast to the last presidential campaign. In 2019, the CNN gave the Democratic President seven hours airtime to talk about their plans to deal with climate change. Harris has published his own detailed plan to deal with environmental discrimination and to keep the pollutants responsible for their greenhouse gas emission, drawing on his record as a prosecutor. The final nominee and winner, Joe Biden, addressed the climate change and made his campaign and his time in the office. Specifically, biden signed the inflation decrease in the Act, which he described as “the biggest step in climate progress”.
Part of the reason for the minimal mention of climate is race itself. President Biden dropped out of the race just over a month ago, leaving Harris and other Democrats little time to develop a distinct, detailed agenda on many issues, including climate, so there’s little to talk about.
The lack of primacy also changes Harris’ motivation. In the 2020 primary, Harris had to try to distinguish himself from a crowded field of primary candidates. Now, Harris only has to draw contrasts with Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump Promise to increase fossil fuel production And undo support for clean energy. he used generated number To reduce the consequences of climate change.
There’s another reason the Harris campaign is de-emphasizing climate change: The issue is energizing fewer voters than ever before, and the choice is clear for those motivated by it. “Very few voters say this issue is decisive for their presidential vote this year.” Patrick Murraywho leads the Polling Institute at Monmouth University, wrote in an email. “Among this small group, they have a clear preference in the race even if the issue is not discussed. Their position seems to be that the Democrats have to win this election first and then we’ll push the issue.”
Climate change is not the defining problem it was just a few years ago
Since the last presidential election, climate change has come down as a priority for voters and especially Democrats. “We have seen a big decrease in anxiety about climate change since 2020,” said Murray.
Most Americans think climate change is a real concern, but the urgency around it has waned. According to a poll conducted in April, Monmouth University found that 46 percent of Americans thought climate change was a “very serious” problem, down from 56 percent in 2021.
For Republicans, climate change consistently Place as a lower concernIf it registers at all, and for Democrats, it’s dropped down the priority list as issues like the economy and immigration move up. “For Democrats, there are multiple issues that compete for their utmost attention. These include issues like gun violence, health care affordability, racial inequality, education, and of course inflation,” said Alec TysonAssociate Director of the Pew Research Center. “It’s an issue that maybe wasn’t on the public radar a few years ago, but it is now.”
Support for climate policies, such as promoting more wind and solar energy, remains high across the board, but it has declined since 2020, with a sharp decline among Republicans.
For Democrats, the key rift that has emerged is how quickly to transition the US economy from fossil fuels to renewable sources. Tyson said Pew’s polling shows there is “almost unanimous belief” in transitioning to clean energy.
“We asked this follow-up question, do you think we should completely break with fossil fuels and rely entirely on renewables, or do you think fossil fuels should still be part of the mix, even though we see renewables Prioritize?” Tyson said. “It’s really a 50-50 split within the Democratic Party.”
That divide has manifested itself in Democratic policy over the past four years. Biden administration has set a goal Net-zero emission from the energy sector by 2035 And imposed new vehicle pollution rules that could make more than half of new car sales electric over the next decade. Biden has signed into law the largest investment in combating climate change in US history.
But the Biden White House has also presided over what has become the world’s largest oil and gas producer and Pride about tactical petroleum reserve To keep the price of petrol low.
Those policies haven’t paid much dividends for Biden among voters Few are even aware Legislation such as the Inflation Reduction Act and provisions for the installation of wind turbines, solar panels and electric vehicle charging stations. even Young votersSomeone who typically ranks climate change as a high-level concern didn’t give much credit to Biden’s environmental sincerity before dropping out.
So for Democrats at the convention, global warming wasn’t much to talk about.
Kamala’s California crew is coming
That said, there’s more to a political convention than the main stage during primetime. Aaron McCall, federal advocacy coordinator for California Environmental Voters, said climate change is still a major issue in side rooms devoted to discussing issues such as LGBTQ rights, vulnerable populations and the economy. Additionally, climate change and energy transitions are important elements of other high-priority issues for Democrats: higher gasoline prices. Contribution to inflationMore extreme natural disasters occur Rising housing coststhe The clean energy sector is a driver of job growthAnd so on.
“At every caucus meeting I’ve been to, the climate comes up,” McCall said from the convention. “Because those communities are the frontline communities, and they’re being impacted.”
The DNC also gave few hints about who will join Harris’ team or have an ear if he moves to the White House next year. As a former Attorney General in California, Harris has a deep bench who worked on climate policy. In recent years, California has passed the law demanding the release of their greenhouse gas emissions and banning the sale of new petrol-powered cars and trucks by 2035. Harris himself had an oversight Investigation into Exxon Mobil statement About oil companies’ contribution to climate change. These personnel will form its policies.
“California has a large presence — Gov. Newsom, Lt. Gov. Kounalakis, Sen. Padilla,” McCall said. “California activists and organizational leaders, since we are coming to talk about Kamala Harris, our next president, we are talking about priority and the things we care about, especially the climate.”
How important is climate change in the election race? In view of the vote, no one is likely to change the candidate of the choice, though it can persuade a few others to go to the ballot box. “In the Democratic Alliance, it is more likely to work as a voter problem,” Tyson said.
But since the results of the election Dr World’s second largest emitter of greenhouse gases On a radically different course, it certainly matters for the climate.
