What Curtis’ victory in Utah means for climate

Jun 26, 2024

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Rep. John Curtis (R-Utah).

Rep. John Curtis (R-Utah) addressing supporters in Provo, Utah, after his victory Tuesday. | Rick Bowmer/AP

A Republican who says he wants to tackle climate change is almost certainly headed to the Senate this fall.

Rep. John Curtis, founder of the House Conservative Climate Caucus, easily won the Republican Senate primary in Utah yesterday to replace retiring incumbent Mitt Romney. The moderate Republican beat a number of more conservative contenders, including Trent Staggs, a MAGA candidate who had former President Donald Trump’s blessing.

Curtis has advocated cutting planet-warming pollution, supporting efforts to boost nuclear and geothermal energy.

He hasn’t strayed far from the Republican baseline, voting against President Joe Biden’s climate law and asserting that fossil fuels can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. But conservative-leaning clean energy advocates helped propel Curtis to victory — a fact his opponents unsuccessfully tried to use against him.

The center-right ClearPath Action Fund spent nearly $500,000 backing Curtis in the race, federal disclosures show. The group’s founder, Jay Faison, gave an additional $2 million (the largest single contribution) to the political action committee Conservative Values for Utah, which spent more than $5.3 million on Curtis’ campaign.

Curtis is the heavy favorite in November’s election, when he faces Democrat Caroline Gleich, a professional ski mountaineer and climate activist.

He is known for sometimes bucking Trump. But while Curtis has led on some climate-focused bills in the House — such as one to measure the carbon intensity of U.S. manufactured goods — he has largely opposed Democrats’ environmental agenda. Since his congressional tenure began in 2017, only 6 percent of his votes on green issues were pro-environment, according to the League of Conservation Voters’ tallies. His LCV scorecard for 2023 is 3 percent.

Whether Curtis’ climate-mindedness is an asset to environmental legislation will likely depend on who takes the White House in November. His policy stance may make little difference if Biden wins and Democrats retain Senate control. But Curtis could fortify a small group of Republican lawmakers who may thwart efforts to repeal some of Biden’s clean energy programs under a Trump presidency.

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The U.S. Supreme Court is seen.

The Supreme Court is seen in Washington on Nov. 13, 2023. | Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

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“Brace for impact,” said Michael Waldman, president of the Brennan Center for Justice.

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As Trump makes his second run for the White House, gone are the vows to end “the war on beautiful, clean coal,” write Hannah Northey and Brian Dabbs.

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Documents seen by POLITICO reveal that preparing the European Union for the dangers of a warming planet is no longer a priority for the bloc’s leaders, writes Zia Weise.

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Climate activist Rowan Schafer-Ramoutar holds up a sign during a June 6 rally in Washington that called on the U.S. Export-Import Bank to stop financing fossil fuel projects.

Climate activist Rowan Schafer-Ramoutar holds up a sign during a June 6 rally in Washington that called on the U.S. Export-Import Bank to stop financing fossil fuel projects. | Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Friends of the Earth

A meeting among some of the world’s wealthiest countries ended last week with no decision on whether to restrict public funding for international oil and gas projects.

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