Politics & Global Warming, September 2021

Based on a September 2021 survey of 898 registered voters, the report finds broad support for various climate-friendly policies, including energy efficiency incentives and renewable energy research, though levels of support vary significantly by political affiliation. While a majority of voters believe clean energy will boost economic growth and job creation, there is a notable gap between the willingness of voters to support climate actions and their actual engagement in political activism over the preceding year.

• A majority of registered voters support a wide range of climate and energy policies, with the highest support for energy efficiency incentives for buildings (86%) and funding for renewable energy research (81%).
• There is significant bipartisan support for local and state-level climate actions, specifically funding for home energy-efficiency improvements (85%), increased public transportation (85%), and the construction of bike paths and lanes (80%).
• Public opinion on the economic impact of clean energy is split along political lines; 52% of all registered voters believe clean energy policies will improve economic growth and create jobs, while 31% believe they will reduce growth and cost jobs.
• While 73% of registered voters believe corporations and industry should do more to address global warming, there is a gap between stated willingness to take political action and actual behavior. For example, 57% say they would sign a petition, but only 19% have done so in the past year.
• There is broad cross-party support for climate education in schools, with 78% of registered voters supporting the teaching of the causes, consequences, and solutions to global warming.
• Support for the U.S. president declaring global warming a national emergency is 63% overall, though this is heavily polarized, with 82% of moderate/conservative Democrats supporting it and 79% of conservative Republicans opposing it.

APA

Leiserowitz, A., Maibach, E., Rosenthal, S., Kotcher, J., Carman, J., Neyens, L., Goldberg, M., Lacroix, K., & Marlon, J. (2021). Politics & Global Warming, September 2021. Center for Climate Change Communication. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/all/politics-global-warming-september-2021-13/

Chicago

Leiserowitz, A., E. Maibach, S. Rosenthal, J. Kotcher, J. Carman, L. Neyens, M. Goldberg, K. Lacroix, and J. Marlon. Politics & Global Warming, September 2021. Center for Climate Change Communication, 2021. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/all/politics-global-warming-september-2021-13/.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{leiserowitz2021politics, author = {Leiserowitz, A. and Maibach, E. and Rosenthal, S. and Kotcher, J. and Carman, J. and Neyens, L. and Goldberg, M. and Lacroix, K. and Marlon, J.}, title = {{Politics \& Global Warming, September 2021}}, institution = {Center for Climate Change Communication}, year = {2021}, month = oct, url = {https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/all/politics-global-warming-september-2021-13/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }