Climate Hawks Vote congratulates the winners of Tuesday’s election: the Fossil Free Caucus and the American public.
The Climate Hawks Vote-endorsed candidates who won:
- Sean Casten (fierce climate hawk who flipped IL-06 against a longtime denier);
- Deb Haaland (ran on 100 percent renewable energy to hold open NM-01);
- Steven Horsford (recaptured his old NV-04 seat, running on his clean energy jobs record);
- Mike Levin (ran on climate/cleantech to flip longtime GOP stronghold CA-49);
- Elaine Luria (ousted climate peacock Scott Taylor to flip Navy-centric VA-02 hit by sea level rise);
- Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (defeated lead climate peacock in flipping south Miami FL-26 where fossil fuel funding of candidates became a campaign issue); and
- Rashida Tlaib (ran on record of fighting corporate polluters, held open MI-13).
Climate Hawks Vote also endorsed incumbent Senators Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) in recognition for their climate leadership, but — in the category of Refreshingly Honest Press Releases — takes no credit whatsoever for their wins.
In addition, candidates who refused fossil fuel money contributions won 19 Congressional races (so far), more-than-doubling the number of members of Congress who refuse fossil fuel money from 16 to 33. Climate Hawks Vote is an active partner in the No Fossil Fuel Money coalition.
“I’m incredibly optimistic about the 116th House of Representatives,” says RL Miller of Climate Hawks Vote. “The incoming freshman class is shifting the Democrats to the left — if you consider 100 percent clean energy ‘left.’ The vast majority of Democrats who won their races campaigned on the idea of 100 percent clean energy. No one outside of fracking country ran on an ‘all of the above’ energy policy.
“This was a midterm election. Climate hawks studied for the midterm, and passed. Our goal was to help flip the House and end the farce of the Climate Solutions Caucus, and we accomplished both goals. It’s time to exercise oversight of the Trump swamp, pass bills both big and small, and prepare for 2020.”
