Change the Climate 2020

NEW: Special Report on the Climate Crisis in the 2020 Primary

Oct 15, 2019

In advance of tonight’s fourth Democratic debate, the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) released the Special Report on the Climate Crisis in the 2020 Primary. The new report provides a snapshot of how the Democratic presidential candidates are prioritizing climate action on the campaign trail.

We examined candidate climate plans, analyzed candidates’ prioritization of climate in stump speeches and social media, evaluated the role of climate change in official debates, and issue updated guidelines for candidates and debate moderators going forward.

Notably, the report includes an analysis of recent Democratic Party events in early states where all candidates were given equal time on the same stage. While most of the candidates mention climate in these stump speeches, less than half (13 of 31) of the speeches included a discussion of specific climate solutions. You’ll also see that there’s a pretty big discrepancy in how often the different candidates are tweeting about climate issues:

Our key takeaway? While we are encouraged that so many presidential candidates have already released comprehensive climate plans and are discussing this critical issue at campaign events and on social media, it’s time for the 2020 presidential candidates to take the next step to prove that climate action is one of their very top priorities.

Check out the full report here.