Environmental Polling Roundup – October 20, 2023
HEADLINES
ecoAmerica – Americans widely believe that climate action will benefit people’s health and make the country stronger, but tend to say that those around them aren’t as concerned about climate change as they are [Release, Report, Topline]
Climate Power + LCV Victory Fund – Latino voters say that it’s “very important” for the U.S. to increase its use of clean energy and overwhelmingly prefer pro-climate candidates [Memo, Deck]
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Latino voters are enthusiastic about the clean energy transition and want candidates who will take climate action. Climate Power and the LCV Victory Fund find that Latino voters overwhelmingly support the country’s clean energy transition and that most feel strongly about it. Additionally, Latino voters show clear preferences for political candidates who follow the science on climate change, recognize that climate change is contributing to extreme weather, and want to crack down on price gouging by Big Oil.
- Americans will continue to underestimate the climate concerns of people around them until they start discussing the topic more with people they know. ecoAmerica finds that Americans systematically underestimate the climate concerns of people around them, as Americans are considerably more likely to say that they personally are concerned about climate change than to say that the people around them are. ecoAmerica’s research also underlines the importance of normalizing conversations about climate change, as less than half of Americans say that they talk about climate change regularly with their friends and family and even fewer discuss the issue in other settings like their workplaces.
GOOD DATA POINTS TO HIGHLIGHT
- [Clean Air + Water] 89% of Americans agree that clean air and water are critical rights for all people [ecoAmerica]
- [Clean Energy] 86% of Americans agree that everyone has a right to clean energy that does not pollute the air or water [ecoAmerica]
- [Climate Action] 85% of Americans agree that we have a moral responsibility to create a safe and healthy climate for ourselves and our children [ecoAmerica]
- [Extreme Weather] 75% of Americans agree that the government needs to protect people from the impacts of extreme weather [ecoAmerica]
- [Personal Action] 74% of Americans agree that they can help reduce the pollution that is causing climate change [ecoAmerica]
- [Climate Action] 73% of Americans agree that investing in solutions to climate change will benefit American communities and make our country stronger [ecoAmerica]
- [Climate Action + Health] 69% of Americans say that it would improve people’s health if the United States took steps to deal with climate change [ecoAmerica]
- [Climate Action + Elections] 65% of Americans say that they will vote for leaders who will prioritize climate change solutions [ecoAmerica]
- [Latino Voters] 80% of Latino voters say that it is important for the United States to increase its use of clean energy sources, including 56% who say that this is “very” important [Climate Power + LCV Victory Fund]
- [Issue Priority] More Americans name climate change and the environment as the single “most important issue” to them than any other issue aside from inflation/prices, health care, and the economy/jobs [The Economist + YouGov]
FULL ROUNDUP
ecoAmerica – Americans widely believe that climate action will benefit people’s health and make the country stronger, but tend to say that those around them aren’t as concerned about climate change as they are [Release, Report, Topline]
ecoAmerica’s newly-released “2023 American Climate Metrics” survey finds widespread agreement on several core climate and environmental beliefs.
There is particularly broad consensus on the ideas that clean air and water, and clean energy sources that prevent their pollution, are fundamental rights:
- 89% agree that “clean air and water are critical rights for all people”
- 86% agree that “everyone has a right to clean energy that does not pollute the air or water”
Language about our responsibility to future generations on climate change also continues to resonate, as 85% agree that “we have a moral responsibility to create a safe and healthy climate for ourselves and our children.”
In terms of government action, Americans widely agree that the government has a responsibility to protect people from extreme weather and that climate action will benefit Americans’ health, communities, and the strength of the country:
- 75% agree that “the government needs to protect people from the impacts of extreme weather”
- 73% agree that “investing in solutions to climate change will benefit American communities and make our country stronger”
- 69% say that it will improve people’s health if the United States takes steps to deal with climate change
At the personal level, the poll finds an encouraging amount of self-efficacy about individual climate action: nearly three-quarters (74%) agree that they personally can “help to reduce the pollution that is causing climate change.”
One notable finding about all of these beliefs is that they extend across partisan lines. While Democrats in the poll tend to express more agreement about climate change than Republicans, majorities of Republicans agree with all of these statements about protecting clean air and water and acting on climate change:
- Clean air and water are critical rights for all people (86% of Republicans agree)
- Everyone has a right to clean energy that does not pollute the air or water (80%)
- We have a moral responsibility to create a safe and healthy climate for ourselves and our children (75%)
- I can help reduce the pollution that is causing climate change (63%)
- The government needs to protect people from the impacts of extreme weather (58%)
- Investing in solutions to climate change will benefit American communities and make our country stronger (54%)
- If the United States took steps to deal with climate change, it would improve people’s health (51%)
Democrats and Republicans are less likely to agree on climate change as a political issue, however. Nearly two-thirds of Americans (65%) agree that they will “vote for leaders who will prioritize climate change solutions,” including the overwhelming majority of Democrats (87%) but less than half of Republicans (44%).
The poll also affirms a consistent finding in polling about climate change: Americans tend to believe that they are more concerned about climate change than the people around them.
While more than seven in ten Americans (72%) say that they are at least “somewhat” concerned about climate change, closer to half (56%) believe that the people around them are at least “somewhat” concerned about the problem.
Democrats in particular tend to believe that those around them aren’t as concerned about climate change as they are. More than nine in ten Democrats (91%) say that they are personally concerned about climate change, but only 60% of Democrats say that the people around them are concerned about the issue.
A lack of regular conversations about climate change is one clear reason why Americans underestimate the climate concerns of people around them. Just under half of Americans (48%) say that they regularly discuss climate change with family or friends, while few regularly talk about climate change in other settings such as with their colleagues (20%) or at a place of worship (9%).
Climate Power + LCV Victory Fund – Latino voters say that it’s “very important” for the U.S. to increase its use of clean energy and overwhelmingly prefer pro-climate candidates [Memo, Deck]
Following up on their recent in-depth national messaging research about key climate and energy debates, Climate Power and the LCV Victory Fund have released a memo and expanded deck detailing their findings among a robust sample (N=329) of Latino voters.
These findings illustrate overwhelming support among Latino voters for clean energy. Pulling from the memo:
“We should be very confident in taking strong pro-clean energy positions with Latino voters who widely believe in its importance. Three data points show how extensive Latino voters’ regard for clean energy is:
- Eight in 10 (80%) Latino voters say it is important for the United States to increase its use of clean energy sources. This includes a majority of 56% who say this is very important.
- At the same time, 74% say it is important for the United States to reduce its reliance on fossil fuel sources, including 50% who say this is very important.
- Bringing these two ideas together, 72% of Latino voters believe we should be speeding up the transition to using more clean and renewable energy sources. Only 28% say we should be slowing the transition down.”
Their research further finds that there are three key climate and energy debates on which Latino voters are particularly likely to side with pro-climate political candidates.
Following science and dealing with climate change vs. Denying climate change is a threat:
- 72% of Latino voters prefer a candidate who “supports following the recommendations of scientists to sharply reduce carbon pollution so we can avoid the worst effects of climate change”
- Only 16% prefer a candidate who “does not believe climate change is a serious threat and does not want to burden the American economy with lots of climate change regulations”
Acting to address extreme weather vs. Denying extreme weather is getting worse:
- 72% of Latino voters prefer a candidate who “believes climate change is making extreme weather events more frequent and more severe so we must act quickly to address it”
- Only 23% prefer a candidate who “believes the weather isn’t getting worse and that the country should focus more on economic growth and less on regulation”
Cracking down on oil company price gouging vs. Tax incentives for oil companies to increase production:
- 65% of Latino voters prefer a candidate who “supports cracking down on price gouging and profiteering by the major oil companies”
- Only 21% prefer a candidate who “supports giving tax cuts and incentives to oil and gas companies to increase the production of oil and gas”
As these data points show, these three debates – about following the science and dealing with climate change, recognizing that we must act on climate change to prevent more extreme weather, and cracking down on Big Oil’s price gouging – are debates that advocates should actively look to engage on with Latino audiences.
Related Resources
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