By Grace Adcox
With Vice President Kamala Harris now the presumptive Democratic nominee for president, and fewer than 100 days until the election, this moment offers a unique opportunity to remind voters of the sharp contrast on climate and clean energy between Harris and former President Donald Trump. Previous Climate Power and Data for Progress polling has found that climate issues are particularly salient with young voters, who could prove determinative this November.
To determine voters’ views as they relate to Harris’ approach to climate and energy issues, Climate Power and Data for Progress conducted two surveys of national likely voters, fielded July 24-26 and July 26-30. Notably, a strong majority of voters prefer Harris’ approach to climate policy overall, want to hold oil and gas companies accountable, and see a strong mandate for Harris to continue building on the progress the Biden-Harris administration has made on clean energy and climate action.
Voters Want a President Who Champions Clean Energy Manufacturing and Climate Action
Nearly 7 of 10 voters say the next president of the United States should continue investing in clean energy manufacturing (68%), including half of Republicans, two-thirds of Independents, and 71% of young voters between 18 and 34.
In a question asked on the subsequent survey, which explicitly names Harris as the presumptive Democratic nominee, 62% of voters say that she should continue investing in clean energy manufacturing to deliver cleaner, cheaper energy options and strengthen the climate actions taken under the Biden-Harris administration, while only 25% disagree – a +37-point margin.
