Each month, LCV shares five stories about the impact of our work. This month, we’re introducing the new LCV president, explaining the LCV v. Trump Part II lawsuit, celebrating history-making women in Congress, and featuring state democracy and clean energy wins in Idaho, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.

This Month’s Stories

1. LCV’s New President is Poised and Ready

Pete Maysmith’s activism started early. He attended his first protest when in elementary school. Although he didn’t know it at the time, his experience linking arms alongside his mother, his younger sister, and countless others protesting a nuclear weapons facility would shape the rest of his life. That morning, Pete learned his first lesson about the power of collective action.

Since then, Maysmith has spent more than 30 years working at the forefront of environmental leadership, fighting for clean air and water, protecting public lands, and working to create a safe climate and environment for all. Most recently, he has served as:

Maysmith’s extensive experience driving LCV’s political and campaign operations make him well suited to lead our organization and the broader Conservation Voters Movement through these unprecedented times and into this critical next chapter of our work. Beginning on April 15, Pete will formally accept the baton from Gene Karpinski, who is stepping down after 19 years as LCV’s president.

“LCV is a fantastic, smart, and powerful organization and I am so honored to succeed Gene Karpinski as president. The threats to our environment and democracy have never been more connected or more dire, and our nation’s biggest challenges – including the climate crisis – require political solutions. Together with our over 30 state affiliates in the broader Conservation Voter Movement, LCV is uniquely positioned to influence policy by working with and holding elected officials accountable, mobilizing, organizing, and building grassroots power in communities, and electing candidates who share our values. I can’t wait to get started,” he said.

Learn more about Pete Maysmith: Read the Q&A.

2. LCV Sues the Trump Administration to Protect Oceans and Coastal Communities

Big news: LCV is suing the Trump administration. Alongside a coalition of environmental organizations, LCV filed a lawsuit against a Trump executive action seeking to allow oil and gas drilling in protected waters in the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans.

LCV won a previous lawsuit challenging a similar executive action from the first Trump administration in the 2019 case LCV vs Trump.

Rather than opening whole new areas to drilling, both climate change and environmental justice require that we finally reduce the amount of leasing and drilling in our nation’s waters. According to Christy Goldfuss, Executive Director at NRDC, “The law is clear: once a president permanently withdraws ocean areas from oil and gas leasing, those protections cannot simply be undone.”

3. Women Members of Congress Making History

It’s Women’s History Month and the perfect time to celebrate the women in Congress who made history by winning their elections in November — and are poised to continue making history in their new roles.

From the first openly transgender woman being elected to Congress to two Black women now serving together in the Senate for the first time, women made history in 2024. These seven women are bringing us closer to our vision of a truly representative democracy and each is a fighter for our environment and our rights:

These individuals are important reminders of how far we’ve come — and how the fight for our future is far from over.

LCV’s connected Political Action Committee, LCV Action Fund, endorsed each of these history makers in 2024. The LCV Action Fund’s endorsement program seeks to elect environmental champions who will address the climate crisis and advance a more equitable clean energy future. In addition, LCV Action Fund understands the critical importance of a representative democracy and is committed to endorsing candidates that are reflective of the diverse communities and identities across the country.

4. Advancing and Defending Democracy in Idaho and Virginia

In the midst of mounting threats to democracy, LCV’s state affiliates are holding the line and advancing democratic access for voters. Recent wins in Idaho and Virginia illustrate the importance and strength of the Conservation Voters Movement, which includes LCV and 30+ state affiliates across the country.

Idaho Affiliate Protects Ballot Initiative Process

Three dangerous bills were defeated in the Idaho legislature — all designed to drastically limit the ability of everyday Idahoans to place and pass issues on the ballot that matter to their communities:

• House Bill 85 sought to give the Governor veto power over ballot initiatives that were passed by the voters.
• Senate Joint Resolution 101 proposed a signature threshold that was so high, it would have made grassroots-driven initiatives virtually extinct.
• House Bill 2 would have increased the threshold to pass a ballot initiative from a simple majority to at least 60%.

With deep Republican supermajorities in both chambers, the odds were stacked against a successful defeat of the measures, but LCV’s affiliate, Conservation Voters for Idaho (CVI), was strategic in their approach:

• Community outreach efforts generated more than 600 emails that flooded the inboxes of state representatives and the governor, and boosted constituent turnout at committee hearings.
• Direct contact in the halls of the Capitol yielded critical conversations with seven swing senators the day before the floor vote.
• Canvassing in strategically important neighborhoods ensured that community members knew about and understood the bill and why it mattered — and were willing to voice their opinions to lawmakers.

The coordinated actions from CVI resulted in a significant victory for democracy: HB 85 was killed in committee with a 7-7 vote, and SJR 101 was pulled before it ever made it to the Senate floor, as CVI’s efforts had flipped enough Republican votes to defeat it outright. And for HB 2, the public opposition to the first two bills was strong enough that the sponsor dropped the bill and didn’t even seek a hearing.

Virginia Restoration of Rights Amendment Passes Significant Hurdle

The state’s legislative session wrapped up with another victory for democracy. Both chambers of the General Assembly voted to amend the constitution to automatically restore voting rights to felons who have served their time. Here’s what happens next:

• To be enacted, a proposed constitutional amendment must pass the legislature in two different years that are separated by an election of members of the House of Delegates.
• After that, the amendment goes before the voters, who will make the ultimate decision on whether or not to amend the constitution.
• This November, every seat in the General Assembly (and all three executive-level offices) are up for election.
• If the newly-elected General Assembly passes the restoration of rights amendment in the 2026 legislative session, it will be on the ballot in November 2026.

LCV’s state affiliate, Virginia League of Conservation Voters (VALCV), played a key role in this victory:

• Helping to elect democracy champions to the state legislature.
• Building coalitions with dozens of organizations and working to lead policy recommendations and strategy.
• Leading rapid response efforts, including action alerts and communications coordination.
• Mobilizing hundreds of emails to lawmakers and holding phone banks to generate support.

LCV’s state affiliates across the country are leading the charge in creating a truly representative and equitable democracy for all.

5. States Push Forward Advancing Clean Energy

With the Trump administration and Elon Musk dismantling federal environmental protections and clean energy progress, it’s more important than ever for states to lead the way. Across the country, states are leaning into their clean energy agendas, standing strong in their commitments to confront climate change, and pushing back on the federal budget cuts and withholding of funds that jeopardize their clean energy plans.

Minnesota’s Green Bank Begins Funding Climate and Clean Energy Projects

Minnesota’s Climate Innovation Finance Authority began funding projects that promote clean energy solutions across the state. The program will loan at least $25 million each year to projects that help advance the state’s climate goals, including solar and hydrothermal projects, battery manufacturing, and electric vehicle infrastructure.

LCV’s state affiliate, Conservation Minnesota and their partner Conservation Minnesota Voter Center were instrumental in securing the state’s commitment to 100% clean energy in 2023. Establishing a state green bank, which uses innovative financing to support investments in clean energy infrastructure, was an important component of that commitment. Together, the two organizations accomplished the following:

• Educated lawmakers and candidates about climate solutions and ran robust campaigns to build support for climate legislation.
• Informed constituents about the voting records of their elected leaders by creating conservation voter guides.
• Ensured that clean energy was at the top of the 2023 policy agenda for lawmakers by launching a variety of public engagement tactics as soon as the legislative session began.
• Reached over 1.2 million Minnesotans and generated over 3,000 calls and emails to lawmakers in support of the legislation.

Pennsylvania’s Governor Shapiro Leads Two Clean Energy Wins

In early February, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro sued the Trump administration for illegally freezing more than $2 billion of climate and clean energy funds, including funds for clean, electric school buses. Two weeks later, those funds were released, after the governor engaged directly with the White House regarding the suit.

As quoted in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, according to Shapiro, “every single dollar that we identified at the filing of our lawsuit is currently unfrozen and once again accessible to Pennsylvania state agencies. We now will resume critical programs and infrastructure projects that have been jeopardized by this illegal freeze.”

In addition, Governor Shapiro reached an agreement with the region’s electric grid operator, PJM Interconnection, to lower customer energy costs. The action came after the governor filed a formal complaint against PJM to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Under the agreement, PJM will lower the price cap for capacity auctions through 2028 — the process through which PJM purchases electricity generation — by around $200, saving Pennsylvania consumers billions of dollars on their energy bills.

LCV’s state affiliate, Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania has worked to maintain continuous positive pressure on the Shapiro administration to defend ratepayer rights and advance clean energy, including:

• Leading advocacy efforts with the governor and state officials.
• Running thank you ad campaigns in key districts that drove more than 1,000 messages to the governor’s office.
• Amplifying wins in the media to celebrate Governor Shapiro’s leadership and keep constituents informed.

Progress in the states holds real promise over the coming months and years. Thanks to the work of LCV and our state affiliates in the Conservation Voters Movement, more than 40% of people in the U.S. now live in states and localities committed to 100% clean energy — up from 1% before we began this work in 2018.