Politics & Global Warming

The report finds that while a majority of US registered voters believe global warming is happening and human-caused, there is a significant political divide, particularly with conservative Republicans. Despite these divisions, there is broad cross-party support for various clean energy policies, such as renewable energy research and tax rebates for energy-efficient vehicles. However, support for more restrictive measures, like carbon taxes or strict emission limits on coal plants, is lower among conservative Republicans. The report also notes a gap between voters' willingness to advocate for climate policy and their actual engagement in such activities.

• A majority of registered voters (72%) believe global warming is occurring, though this belief is significantly lower among conservative Republicans (37%) and has declined within the Republican party since the 2016 election.
• 54% of registered voters believe human activities are the primary cause of global warming, with a stark contrast between liberal Democrats (83%) and conservative Republicans (21%).
• There is broad support across political lines for several clean energy policies, including funding renewable energy research (87%), generating renewable energy on public land (86%), and providing tax rebates for energy-efficient vehicles or solar panels (83%).
• While 76% of registered voters support U.S. participation in the Paris Climate Agreement, 63% specifically oppose the decision by the United States to withdraw from it.
• Most registered voters (74%) believe corporations and industry should do more to address global warming, a sentiment shared by majorities of Democrats, Independents, and Republicans.
• A majority of registered voters (62%) believe that protecting the environment improves economic growth and creates jobs, and 75% believe environmental protection is more important than economic growth when the two conflict.
• There is strong support (79%) for including the causes, consequences, and solutions of global warming in school curricula, though conservative Republicans are split on the issue.
• There is a significant gap between the intention to act and actual behavior: 38% of registered voters say they would participate in a campaign to convince officials to take action, but only 12% have actually contacted an official in the past 12 months.
• Support for the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) global warming budget is high, with 82% of registered voters believing it should be increased (54%) or kept the same (28%).

APA

Center for Climate Change Communication (2017). Politics & Global Warming. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Global-Warming-Policy-Politics-October-2017-min.pdf

Chicago

Center for Climate Change Communication. Politics & Global Warming. 2017. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Global-Warming-Policy-Politics-October-2017-min.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for Climate Change Communication |title=Politics & Global Warming |date=October 2017 |url=https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Global-Warming-Policy-Politics-October-2017-min.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforclimatechangecommunication2017politics, author = {{Center for Climate Change Communication}}, title = {{Politics \& Global Warming}}, institution = {Center for Climate Change Communication}, year = {2017}, month = oct, url = {https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Global-Warming-Policy-Politics-October-2017-min.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }