Although not drastic, this dip in urgency is widespread. There are fewer people, across all ages, races, and education levels, who believe climate change must be addressed immediately than they did a year ago. Nevertheless, the majority of Americans believe it is an important issue that must be addressed immediately or within the next few years.
When Americans rated the nation’s economy “good” a year ago, more Americans considered climate change urgent. The percentage of people who believe climate change must be addressed immediately has declined as negative views of the economy have increased.
Americans rank top priority Pocketbook issues such as inflation and the economy. Our polling revealed that climate change, along with COVID-19 (also at 39%), is the least important of the seven topics.
The issue of climate change is more important to Democrats than it is to Republicans or independents. Six in ten Republicans consider the issue to be of little concern. Four out of 10 people don’t believe it is necessary to address the issue.
Americans who believe climate change should be a top priority (a majority of them Democrats) think it’s something everyone needs to address immediately (more than 8 in 10).
In the past, Democrats have favored policies that reduce climate change. Republicans, on the other hand, have been less supportive of such policies or opposed to them.
Liberal Democrats place climate change as a higher priority than moderates. Liberal Democrats place climate change as a higher priority than economic issues. Moderates, however, prioritize economic issues over climate change.
A February CBS News poll found that 55% of liberal Democrats felt the Biden administration wasn’t sufficiently focused on climate change. This was compared to 39% moderate Democrats who shared this view.
However, the majority of rank-and-file members of the party give President Biden high marks for his handling of this issue. Both moderates and liberal Democrats approve of his handling of climate change issues. Both Republicans and independents disagree.
Overall, 43% approve of the way Mr. Biden handles climate change. Although it’s not in the positives, it is still higher than his approvals of Mr. Biden’s handling of climate change.
The transition to renewable energy sources is one of the ways that climate change can be slowed down. Over half of Americans believe that the United States should promote electricity from solar and wind energy sources. This figure rises to 79% for those who believe people must address climate change now.
People who believe climate change can be left to the future or not at any time (a Republican-leaning group), tend to favor policies in the United States that encourage electricity from coal and oil, or both.
