In communications about President Biden’s pause on liquefied natural gas (LNG) export projects, voters are most swayed by messaging about health. The most effective and convincing way to talk about this pause is in the context of the pollution risk methane gas facilities pose and the health consequences from them. While other frames are still useful, the pollution-focused message was chosen overall and by virtually all subgroups as the best message on the topic.

This post includes climate and environment headlines, data points, and key takeaways from recent public polls - including new polling on voters’ relative trust in the two parties to handle climate change and the environment, as well as new polling and consumer data about electric vehicles.

HEADLINES

Republican EV drivers outnumber Democratic EV drivers in many states, based on voter file data and vehicle records. In nine of the 31 states and DC that register voters by party, for example, more Republican voters are linked to records of electric vehicles – including insurance and repair records – than Democrats. Republicans, independents and third-party voters associated with electric vehicles also exceed Democrats in 24 of those states. There is a mix of market factors, such as consumer awareness, infrastructure, incentives and availability, that drive sales.

This post includes climate and environment headlines, data points, and key takeaways from recent public polls - including new polls of Western voters and young conservatives.

The latest “State of the Rockies” poll finds that Western voters across party lines rate conservation issues as an important factor in their vote this year. For the first time in the poll’s history, the majority of Republicans say that conservation should be prioritized over maximizing fossil fuel production. 90% of voters in Western States support requiring oil and gas companies, rather than federal and state governments, to pay for all of the clean-up and land restoration costs after drilling is finished.

This post includes climate and environment headlines, data points, and key takeaways from recent public polls - including new polling on ESG/responsible investing, offshore wind, electric vehicles, and the Green New Deal.

Cultural attitudes drive the partisan split on electric vehicles, as Democrats and Republicans disagree more about whether electric vehicles are for “people like them” than on any of the specific benefits or downsides of EVs. In this new survey of Americans with household incomes of $50,000 or more (intended to approximate the market for new cars in the U.S.), Democrats and Republicans have very similar answers when asked to name their two greatest concerns about owning an electric vehicle.

Americans in coastal counties have overwhelmingly positive attitudes about offshore wind energy and support offshore wind near where they live. Energy independence is a strong rationale for expanding offshore wind, though there are concerns about impacts on wildlife. Surveying Americans who live in coastal counties, they find that these Americans have overwhelmingly positive attitudes about offshore wind and its expansion – including in their own areas: 68% support the construction of offshore wind farms to harness wind; energy in U.S.

Voters consistently support the idea of a Green New Deal when they learn what it would contain. Nearly two-thirds of voters (65%) – including majorities of Democrats (85%) and independents (64%), as well as a plurality of Republicans (45%) – support a Green New Deal when provided with the information below. Support for the Green New Deal also stands up to scrutiny.

7 in 10 Americans express some level of interest in buying or leasing an electric-only vehicle (EV). Among Americans who said they expect their next vehicle to be new, 38% said they would at least seriously consider getting an EV if they were to get a vehicle today. This however highlights a significant gap between consideration and actual purchases, as only around 7% of new vehicle purchases in 2023 were battery electric vehicles. Deeper analysis of the survey findings showed that overall consumer experience with EVs is very low.