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Not a Great Election Year for Renewable Energy, but There’s Reason for Optimism
The results included small successes for renewable energy, like a constitutional amendment in Nevada requiring 50 percent renewable energyby 2030, and a ballot measure in Columbus, Ohio, that sets up a system for buying 100 percent renewable energy for residents. But there was nothing nearly as big as the 2018 election of Democratic governors in seven states that previously had been led by Republicans (Illinois, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico, Nevada, Maine and Wisconsin) and the shift to Democratic control of legislative chambers in some states, changes that set the stage for landmark energy legislation in several of the states. [ read more … ]
Election 2020
Mich., Wis. flip to Biden amid worsening climate impacts
For climate-focused voters, the 2020 presidential election won’t turn on the saltwater states of Florida and Texas, or even North Carolina. It will advance in the Great Lakes region, where climate concerns are rising as fast as the lakes themselves, threatening 26 million people, five major U.S. cities and some of the nation’s most important agricultural areas. Wisconsin, which fronts two Great Lakes — Michigan and Superior — went to former Vice President Joe Biden by less than 1 percentage point. In neighboring Michigan, Biden won by a small but slightly larger margin, according to official vote tallies. [ read more … ]
Why a President Biden could fail on clean energy
Democrats seemingly failed to deliver a “green wave” in races across the country, leaving Joe Biden — who was edging out President Trump in vote tallies today — facing daunting odds if elected to achieve sweeping action on energy policy and climate change. A Biden presidency without a Democratic majority in the Senate could largely be relegated to tinkering around the edges on energy policy, with his ambition to secure a transition to renewable energy a heavy lift. [ read more … ]
Climate lobbying blitz would follow Biden to White House
With divided government on the horizon, the sweeping legislative response to climate change that many corporate leaders say they support is likely off the table, according to political experts. But lobbyists and insiders believe there may still be opportunities in the coming years for corporations to shape climate policy — even if Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden wins the White House and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) continues to run the upper chamber.
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Inside the climate records of the Trump, Biden legal teams
As President Trump vows to dispute a win by former Vice President Joe Biden, each candidate is lawyering up in preparation for potentially messy courtroom brawls over ballots in states like Nevada and Pennsylvania with tight contests for crucial electoral votes. The legal teams both campaigns have selected to resolve possible disputes over drive-thru voting and mail-in ballots come from firms with large oil and gas practices. At least one firm on call to fight for Trump’s reelection has represented the energy industry in a high-profile climate battle. [ read more … ]
Climate
As U.S. leaves Paris accord, climate policy hangs on election outcome
If Trump were to eke out a victory, the U.S. government would all but vanish from international efforts to slow the Earth’s warming, in favor of promoting fossil fuels. Democratic nominee Joe Biden has called climate change “the existential threat to humanity” and vowed to immediately rejoin the Paris accord if elected. But even if he wins the White House, his plan to invest trillions of dollars toward making the United States a greener nation will face a deeply divided Congress. Either way, Tuesday’s election could result in the one thing scientists say the nation and the planet can no longer afford: More years of U.S. stagnation on climate action.
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The U.S. Left the Paris Climate Pact. Allies and Rivals Are Pressing Ahead.
At the stroke of midnight Wednesday, when the United States became the only country to formally quit the Paris Agreement, the global accord designed to avert catastrophic climate change, it fulfilled a campaign promise that Donald J. Trump made four years ago. But a lot has happened in those four years. [ read more … ]
2 states feel warming’s wrath. 1 chose Trump
Pollsters who queried likely voters in Arizona and Florida in late October about climate change revealed a gap that could help explain one of the most intriguing results from Election Day.
The states’ residents view their climate risks differently. And their choice for president also diverged. When pollsters for a New York Times/Siena College survey asked Arizona voters to rate their concern about rising temperatures from global warming, 34% said they were very worried. [ read more … ]
States
Ariz.’s political views shift with changing power mix
Arizona’s embrace of renewable energy and Democrat Joe Biden doesn’t surprise Brett Isaac. The longtime energy worker has seen firsthand the region’s shifting attitudes.
Years ago, family members mocked him when he began installing solar panels on Navajo Nation homes. Isaac is from a Navajo coal mining community near the Arizona-Utah state line, and some of his relatives worked at Peabody Energy Corp.’s nearby Kayenta mine. [ read more … ]
Markets
Renewable energy falls as U.S. green ambitions dim
Shares of renewable energy companies tumbled yesterday as the U.S. presidential election remained too close to call and hopes dimmed that Democrats would take control of the Senate.
A Bloomberg Intelligence index of large solar companies plunged as much as 4.9%, the most during intraday trading since March, as Republicans appear poised to retain a slim Senate majority. The WilderHill Clean Energy Index fell as much as 5.1%. [ read more … ]
Note: News clips provided do not necessarily reflect the views of coalition or its member governors.