How to Stop the AG-onizing Resistance to US Climate Policy

In the melee that marks the 2024 election year, it is easy to lose focus on down-ballot candidates that have as much — perhaps more — influence over US climate policy as the presidential contenders. Who are these influencers? Naturally, they’re the lawyers!

But not just any lawyers. I’m speaking here of state attorneys general (AGs) — ten of whom are up for election in 2024, with an additional 30 in 2026. Whoever wins the presidency will be frustrated, and their climate-related actions will be attacked by opposition lawsuits — many of which will be led by state AGs.

Even before climate change became a critical front in the culture war, fossil-fuel-state challenges to federal climate-related actions have dramatically dragged out and down largely Democratic initiatives meant to transition the nation to a low-carbon economy. Fossil fuel states are overwhelmingly Republican, especially at the state level. To be fair, Republican AGs are only half the story. (See Figure 1)

While red-state AGs sue Democratic administrations to delay or strike down climate-related regulations responsive to the science, blue-state AGs take Republican administrations to court to stop them from unwinding protections and attempt to sue oil companies for knowingly harming human and planetary health.