Support for Efforts to Combat Climate Change Has Lessened Among Republicans in the US

An Email Inquiry to a Republican Climate Advocate (Debbie Dooley, Tea Party Patriots)

 

Dear Debbie Dooley:                                                                                          11/17/2024

debbie@mainstreetpatriots.us

I acknowledge that you have worked with the Republican party and respect that you are also a vocal and strong advocate for solar energy in the United States, particularly in the conservative movement. I also recognize your establishment of the Tea Party Patriots in Georgia, focusing on related issues amongst conservatives. Conservatives must shift toward a future that is not focused on fossil fuels. I see you have fought to green the Republican party, and admire your efforts. The Climate Scorecard Project is a non-partisan nonprofit that aims to instill hope for a climate-friendly future in people worldwide. On that note, I’d like to invite you to read and share our newsletters and help continue to support greening the future in the United States. I was also wondering about your views on the new Trump Administration’s values toward the climate and your current personal views on the environment in the United States.

The groups of people most reluctant to accept the use of renewable energy in the United States vary. For example, landowners who might be affected by a project could present their disinterest, and environmental advocates could choose to oppose a project due to concerns for the local ecosystem. People who oppose a renewable energy project can cross sociopolitical, economic, and community dimensions, according to a 2022 research study done by Susskind and colleagues. In addition, local policies have been adopted to restrict the development of wind and solar projects in numerous municipal, township, and county areas.

According to a 2016 research study done by Funk and Kennedy, at the time, 83% of conservative Republicans and 97% of liberal Democrats were in favor of expanding solar panels and wind energy farms. Interestingly, many people living in the Western United States and young adults favored installing solar panels in their homes–52%, as opposed to other areas such as the South with 33%.

Unfortunately, in recent years, especially since 2020, climate change has been seen as a priority for the President and Congress to tackle by only 12% of Republicans and Republican leaners. Republican support remains pretty high for renewable energy (at 70%). Yet, it is still lower today than in 2016, and 73% of Republicans favor offshore oil and gas drilling, and 68% favor hydraulic fracturing. In addition, 87% of Republicans say a transition away from fossil fuels and toward renewable energy sources would be very or somewhat likely to lead to unexpected problems for the country.

Interestingly, some statistics about Republican voters are the following: 57% of middle-income voters without a college degree and 63% of upper- or upper-middle-income voters associate with the Republican Party. In addition, 63% of the highest-income earners are Republican. This shows that Republican voters tend to be upper-middle-income earners, yet they often lack a college degree.

Although statistics show that those who oppose renewable energy are typically on a varied range of sociopolitical and economic status, it is important to note that those who support higher fossil fuel usage are Republicans. Those who oppose renewable energy projects are typically local, and many lawsuits occur across various groups of people to fight renewable energy projects. In terms of politics, it is notable that some modern Republicans, like former president Donald Trump, campaign for more fossil fuel usage. Many Republican campaigns can be observed in this light.

According to a study by Kennedy and Tyson for the Pew Research Center (2024), Republicans believe that shifting away from fossil fuels would increase prices and reduce the electrical grid’s reliability. Furthermore, two-thirds of Republicans say prices for everyday goods would worsen if the U.S. greatly reduced fossil fuel energy production while increasing production from renewable sources.

There are current tactics to combat the campaigns by fossil fuel companies to spread disinformation about climate change and misinformation about it in general. Experts can fight back with social media tactics such as sites like Facebook and X flagging the disinformation, as well as regular people being able to fact-check misinformation. I believe that the best way to combat climate change disinformation and misinformation is to educate people more and fact-check. Widespread education must be brought to the forefront of current events in society, such as the elections coming up, as well as in schools and social media campaigns.

I look forward to hearing back from you.

Best regards,

Abigail Carlson (unlimited.sisu@gmail.com)

Climate Scorecard US Country Manager

www.climatescorecard.org

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