Younger Republicans significantly more concerned about environment than older ones: Gallup

Younger Republicans are significantly more likely to worry about the environment than older Republicans, according to a Gallup poll published Monday.

Of Republicans ages 18 to 34, about 32 percent say they worry “a great deal” about the quality of the environment, while 37 percent said they worry a “fair amount.”

Those ages 35 to 54 worry less, with 18 percent worrying a great deal and 34 percent a fair amount.

Around 14 percent of Republicans aged 55 and older say they worry a great deal and 32 percent say they worry a fair amount.

Climate change has increasingly been in the news amid weeks of deadly heat and high temperatures in Europe and the United States, with a number of cities breaking records.

Extreme temperatures are tied to climate change as greenhouse gases trapped in the atmosphere lead to warming temperatures across the globe.

Efforts to pass climate change legislation in Congress were dealt a blow this month when Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) announced he would not support the package in the evenly divided Senate, where his vote is crucial.

President Biden last week called climate change an “emergency” and announced some limited actions to combat extreme heat and ramp up offshore wind energy.

According to the Gallup researchers, if younger Republicans are more likely to worry about the environment, public opinion on action to combat climate change could shift.

“If increasing numbers of Republicans experience extreme weather, and younger generations continue to exhibit higher levels of environmental concerns, these partisans overall may become more likely to believe global warming is affecting the world and increase their worry about the environment,” researchers wrote.

The Gallup poll shows 64 percent of Democrats worry a great deal about the quality of the environment and around 80 percent of Democrats in all age groups say the effects of climate change and global warming are already here.

About 44 percent of Republicans ages 18 to 34 say the world is experiencing the effects of climate change, a similar percentage shared among Republicans ages 35 to 54, according to the Gallup poll.

Around 29 percent of Republicans 55 and older say the effects of global warming are already here.

Independents also vary by age, but are far more likely than Republicans to worry about the quality of the environment and say the effects of global warming are already here.

The Gallup poll was based on aggregated data from annual surveys taken from 2019 to 2022.