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Farm state voters in swing states like Minnesota see extreme weather, such as droughts and floods, as a significant threat to farming. According to a new poll conducted by Iowa-based RABA Research on behalf of the Union of Concerned Scientists, a majority of these voters say they would be more likely to back a 2020 presidential candidate who proposes ways to help farmers and communities cope by building healthy, living soil.
More from the study: Overwhelming majorities of voters in each state—as high as 93% in Nebraska and Minnesota—say extreme weather is a significant threat to farmers and communities in their area.
Why This Matters: This poll shows that there’s a real opportunity for presidential candidates to talk about the environment and conservation with voters. They cannot shy away from this issue and fail to connect it to the economy. Joe Biden has a strong rural climate action vision that promises to “ensure our agricultural sector is the first in the world to achieve net-zero emissions, and that our farmers earn income as we meet this milestone.” Additionally, Pete Buttigieg, Elizabeth Warren, and Bernie Sanders also address farming issues in their climate plans. Let’s hope that they begin to drive these issues home on the campaign trail.
Go Deeper: Check out what soil conservation actually entails.
by Julia Fine Last month, we wrote about the outbreak of locust swarms traveling from East Africa to the Indian subcontinent. Now, as the New York Times reported yesterday, the locusts have made their way to New Delhi. The capital region’s fields, metro stations, suburbs, and more are now teeming with swarms. We previously noted […]
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Our nation is in the midst of a moment where statues and monuments celebrating our racist past are being reevaluated and taken down. However, some on the political right have begun calling into question the validity of this conversation. Conservative media personality Meghan McCain wrote in a tweet that we’re “one week removed from entire […]
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The House was set to vote to pass the Great American Outdoors Act, which will provide nearly $1B annually for parks and other conservation, but a group of Western Republicans has raised procedural hurdles that will delay final passage until late July, The Hill reported yesterday. And, a new report from the Center for American Progress (CAP) urges the United States to launch a major effort—a “Race for Nature” — to help the nation’s agricultural producers, who are facing a bleak economic future, by increasing opportunities to pay them for their conservation efforts.
Why This Matters: As the CAP Report explains, “Family farmers and ranchers need lifelines…Bold and swift investment in nature conservation can provide one.”
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