Environmental Polling Roundup – November 22, 2024
HEADLINES
Environmental Protection Network – Voters across the political spectrum would rather see the EPA strengthened than cut, and want to see its new leadership focus on environmental protection rather than repealing regulations [Release, Deck]
Data for Progress – Voters oppose Lee Zeldin’s nomination to lead the EPA after learning about his record on the environment [Article, Crosstabs]
Navigator – Climate change was one of voters’ top reasons to support Harris over Trump [Release, Deck]
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Public health vs. corporate profits is a powerful frame for communicating about Trump’s EPA. The Environmental Protection Network finds that voters overwhelmingly want the EPA to remain focused on protecting clean air and water, not repealing regulations. And the large majority of voters, including nearly half of Trump voters, are concerned that Trump’s EPA will put corporate interests ahead of clean water, clean air, and public health. With Trump prepared to give free rein to the oil and gas industry, the idea that he’s putting oil and gas companies’ profits ahead of public health is a compelling narrative with which to explain his attempts to gut environmental protections and mobilize opposition to these actions – including from those who voted for him.
- Lee Zeldin is a blank state nationally, but voters can be moved to oppose his nomination by learning basics about his record. Data for Progress finds that voters have little familiarity with Zeldin, especially compared to many of Trump’s higher-profile picks for cabinet positions. This creates a window of opportunity for environmental advocates to define Zeldin in the public eye, and Data for Progress finds that basic information about his record – including his votes to cut EPA funding, eliminate programs that help protect people from hazardous chemicals, and block standards to reduce climate pollution – convinces voters to oppose his nomination.
GOOD DATA POINTS TO HIGHLIGHT
- [EPA] By a 69%-31% margin, voters say that the EPA’s next leader should focus on implementing environmental protections like the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act (69%) rather than focus on repealing regulations and cutting the EPA’s staff and budgets (31%) [Environmental Protection Network]
- [EPA] Voters are far more likely to say that the EPA should be strengthened (50%) or remain the same (36%) than to say that it should be weakened or eliminated (14%) [Environmental Protection Network]
- [EPA] Voters oppose Lee Zeldin’s nomination as EPA Administrator by a 15-point margin (36% support / 51% oppose) after reading a brief statement about his environmental record [Data for Progress]
- [Justice] 80% of voters support increasing federal funding to communities that are disproportionately harmed by air and water pollution [Environmental Protection Network]
FULL ROUNDUP
Environmental Protection Network – Voters across the political spectrum would rather see the EPA strengthened than cut, and want to see its new leadership focus on environmental protection rather than repealing regulations [Release, Deck]
Voters across party lines believe that the EPA is having a positive impact. The survey, which sampled 1,000 self-identified voters in the November 5 election, finds that the majority of the electorate (59%) believes that the EPA has a positive impact on their life. Only 15% say that the EPA negatively impacts them.
Majorities across the political spectrum, including Democrats (71% positive / 6% negative), independents (54% positive / 19% negative), and Republicans (53% positive / 19% negative), say that the EPA positively impacts them.
Voters – including Trump voters – would rather see the EPA strengthened than cut. Half of voters (50%) want to see the EPA “strengthened or expanded,” while just 14% say that the agency should be “weakened or eliminated.” The remainder (36%) say that the EPA should remain the same.
And despite Trump’s history of gutting environmental standards, few of his voters want to see the EPA weakened. Voters who supported Trump in the election are 15 points more likely to say that they want the EPA to be strengthened or expanded (39%) than to say that they want it to be weakened or eliminated (24%).
Public health vs. corporate profits is a powerful frame for communicating about Trump’s EPA. Voters overwhelmingly want the EPA to remain focused on protecting the environment, not repealing regulations.
By a 69%-31% margin, voters say that the next EPA leader should be someone “who will focus on implementing environmental protections such as the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act” (69%) rather than someone who will “focus on repealing regulations and cutting EPA’s staff and budgets” (31%). (Trump’s choice of Lee Zeldin as EPA Administrator was announced while the survey was in the field.)
Even among Trump voters, the majority (55%) say that the EPA’s leadership should focus on environmental protection rather than repealing regulations.
The survey also finds clear concerns, even among many Trump voters, that Trump’s EPA will put corporate polluters ahead of public health. Around two-thirds of voters (67%), including nearly half of Trump voters (46%), are concerned that Trump’s pick to lead the EPA “will put the interests of polluting corporations ahead of protecting clean water, clean air, and public health.”
Data for Progress – Voters oppose Lee Zeldin’s nomination to lead EPA after learning about his record on the environment [Article, Crosstabs]
Zeldin is a blank state nationally. Less than three in ten voters (27%) are familiar with Zeldin, and those who have heard of him are split evenly in their attitudes about him (14% favorable / 14% unfavorable).
For context, every other cabinet nominee that the poll asked about – including Matt Gaetz, Tulsi Gabbard, Pete Hegseth, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. – has considerably higher name recognition (40%+).
Voters disapprove of Zeldin’s nomination after learning about his record, despite Republicans’ willingness to stick with him. Data for Progress provided respondents with the following information about Zeldin’s record:
“As a member of Congress, Lee Zeldin voted to cut EPA funding, eliminate an EPA program that evaluates the health and environmental hazards of chemicals, and prohibit the EPA from setting standards to reduce carbon pollution.”
After reading this statement, voters oppose Zeldin’s nomination to lead the EPA by a 15-point margin (36% support / 51% oppose). Republicans, however, are still inclined to support Zeldin’s nomination (62% support / 21% oppose) despite his anti-environmental record.
Most voters oppose the idea of recess appointments for Trump’s cabinet. The majority of voters (54%) say that they disapprove of recess appointments and want Trump’s cabinet nominees to be confirmed by the Senate, whereas 38% say that Trump should be able to appoint his cabinet without Senate confirmation.
Voters are predictably divided by partisanship over this issue, with the majority of Republicans (68%) approving of recess appointments for Trump’s cabinet while majorities of Democrats (80%) and independents (60%) disapprove.
Navigator – Climate change was one of voters’ top reasons to support Harris over Trump [Release, Deck]
Voters widely trusted Harris over Trump to handle climate change. Polls of the 2024 electorate, both before and after the election, have consistently found that abortion and climate change were Harris’s clearest issue strengths against Trump.
In this survey conducted in the days shortly before and after the election, Navigator asked whether several issues were more of a reason to support Harris or Trump. Of the issues named in the survey, climate change ranked on par with Project 2025, abortion, and January 6th as the clearest rationales to support Harris rather than Trump:
- The attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, 2021 – Harris +21
- The proposals within Project 2025 – Harris +21
- U.S. efforts to fight climate change – Harris +20
- The status of abortion laws in the U.S. – Harris +18
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