Before The US General Election, Evidence Of Agreement – And Division – On Climate Issues

Just one month before an election in which climate change may be a key issue, new survey results show that climate change may be less politically polarizing than many might expect.

Climate Insights 2020: Partisan Divide–the fourth installment in a series of survey reports by researchers at Stanford University, Resources for the Future, and ReconMR–illustrates climate-related beliefs, attitudes, and policy preferences across the political spectrum.

The survey, which polled 999 American adults from May to August 2020, identifies the issues on which political groups agree–and disagree. And although there are situations in which opinions differ along party lines, there is also bipartisan support on a number of issues related to climate change.

“While some observers have claimed that climate change is a deeply partisan issue, the data show more nuance–majorities of all three groups of Americans agree on the existence, causes, and threat of climate change, as well as on various government policies that could be used to mitigate future warming,” report co-author Jon Krosnick said. “And the partisan gap dividing American public opinion on this issue is smaller than it is on many other important issues facing the country.”