A new poll illustrates that younger Republican voters are closer to Democrats than their older GOP counterparts in their views on fossil fuel development. Younger GOP voters are also more likely to believe climate change is human-driven, according to the new poll.
An Associated Press/National Opinion Research Center poll found 40% of young Republican voters saying they believe climate change is primarily human-driven, up from 26% in 2017, while the percentage for older Republicans has stayed at 26% through the years. Younger Republicans’ support for fossil fuel development, standing at 35%, was closer to that of Democrats (28%) than of older Republicans (53%). Younger Republicans were also more likely to support clean energy expansion than older Republicans (37% vs. 28%).
A monthly carbon fee? Most Americans aren’t willing to pay a monthly carbon fee on their energy use. 45% of Americans would be willing to support a fee of $1 – but only 25% would support a $75 or $100 monthly fee. Democrats are more willing to support the efforts than Independents and Republicans.
Who’s responsible for addressing climate change? While previous polls had detailed Americans believing that developing countries had the least responsibility when it came to addressing climate change, that changed when the participants were asked about rapidly developing countries such as India and China. While a majority of Americans believe that the federal government, corporations and industry, and developed nations outside the U.S. bear a great deal of responsibility for addressing climate change, 57% believed that India and China would also need to address the issue.
More than 6,000 participants aged 18 and older were interviewed throughout March and April for the poll. Read the poll here.