by Ken Sandler
There’s an election coming up November 3rd, and it’s the first chance for every American to simultaneously cast their judgement on the actions of the second Trump administration and Republican-led Congress – and proclaim what they want to see moving forward.
Not happy about this administration’s assault on clean energy? Want something better? Well, if so, I’ve got some U.S. House candidates for you.
Most of the national environmental organizations that make endorsements have been relatively quiet to date, waiting most likely for all of the party primaries to conclude. But for anyone who may want to provide support, whether through donations, or volunteering to make phone calls, send postcards, or knock on doors, the earlier one gets involved, the better.
Therefore, I’ve done a bit of my own research, identifying 10 top tier U.S. House candidates, all in genuine toss up races, with noteworthy clean energy credentials or aspirations, based on statements on candidate webpages plus their backgrounds and experience. And for this Blue Virginia post, at Lowell’s request, I’ve added one more fine Virginia candidate in a competitive House seat at the end.
Before I go down the list, a word on partisanship. While all the candidates below are Democrats, nothing would delight me more than to see a Republican officeholder fighting tooth and nail for clean energy and the environment. When I was young, some of the greatest environmentalist politicians were in fact Republicans, such as Reps. John Chaffee, Sherwood Boehlert and William Cohen. When I first came to DC, I actually did a brief internship under a terrific environmentalist Republican Congresswoman from Rhode Island, Claudine Schneider. And at the EPA, I got to work under some fine Republican appointees, like Bill Reilly and Christine Todd Whitman.
But sadly, I see no equivalent environmental leaders in today’s GOP, at least at the national level. And even among the few Republican politicians who do show some support for clean energy, when push comes to shove, they are inevitably disciplined by their party to get back in line – and almost always do.
For example, when the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act was being debated, 13 House Republicans wrote a letter requesting that the brutal cuts to clean energy programs and tax credits be restored. They were not – yet none of the 13 ended up voting against the final bill.
So, sorry, I’m not going to water down my standards just to make this list bipartisan. That said, here are my top ten, in the order that they inspired me:
No better candidate than a trained environmental expert with a mission, and Iowa has one – environmental engineer and law professor Christina Bohannan, the Democratic challenger running in the state’s First Congressional District. Her website features a strong and detailed statement on environmental issues, touching on “water pollution from nitrates, PFAS chemicals, and other contamination”, the impacts of climate change, and “the corrupt practices of Big Oil”.
Among her pledges for this agricultural state are to: “Invest in Iowa’s clean energy economy…Increase resources and incentives for farmers to boost buffer zones surrounding waterways to block pollutants…[and] Increase resources and incentives for farmers to grow cover crops that reduce runoff and sequester carbon.”
The combination of Bohannon’s background with her strong, detailed statement makes her a likely future national clean energy and environmental leader if she can prevail in November.
While Democratic candidate for Arizona’s Second Congressional District Jonathan Nez does not say anything about the environment on his campaign website, he has a very interesting record. As the former President of the Navajo Nation, Nez made the largest reservation in the U.S. a leader in clean energy. Following a 2019 proclamation committing the tribe to an equitable transition to renewable energy, Nez led the development of two solar power facilities generating over 55 megawatts powering approximately 36,000 homes on the Navajo Nation.
Nez attracted funding from the U.S. Department of Energy for a number of additional solar and battery storage projects in Navajo communities. As he said in a speech to the American Solar Energy Society (ASES), “This is about building our nation and renewable energy is a big part of that movement here on the Navajo Nation.”
There are only four Native Americans currently serving in the U.S. House and, if elected, Nez would thus bring the unique perspective of a Tribal leader with clean energy experience and commitment.
As State Senator for a southwestern Michigan district including Kalamazoo, Sean McCann chairs the Michigan Senate’s Energy and Environment Committee. In this position, he has led the state Democratic response to the Trump administration’s cuts to clean energy programs, stating “While Washington Republicans roll back progress on key climate change solutions, Michigan Democrats will continue fighting to lower costs, strengthen our economy, and forge a clean energy future for the next generation.”
He specifically criticizes “Trump’s decision to force aging coal plants to stay open, including one in Holland, Michigan, months after it was due to close [which] is damaging our environment and raising energy costs for people in Michigan and beyond.” As an alternative, he says “Solar, wind, and nuclear energy here in Michigan will help us support US energy independence, reduce pollution, and create good-paying jobs in our community.”
McCann also highlights water quality, noting “We also know all too painfully what happens when you don’t take care of the water, as we’ve seen with the lead water crises in Benton Harbor and Flint.” Drawing on his state legislative experience, McCann would be able to hit the ground running on these issues if elected to the U.S. Congress.
Another candidate with a solid, detailed platform on environmental issues is Rebecca Bennett, running in New Jersey’s highly competitive 7th district. As she neatly sums up her position on her campaign website: “With smart investments in renewable energy and real environmental stewardship, we can create jobs and lower energy costs while also tackling the climate crisis and ensuring New Jersey families have clean air and clean water for generations to come.”
Among her pledges are to “Incentivize the use of renewable and green energy, including solar installation and electric vehicles, and upgrade our power grid to meet increased energy demand through new technologies.” She also promises to “[f]acilitate the removal of forever chemicals, lead, and other dangerous pollutants from drinking water and upgrade water treatment facilities.” And like others on this list, she targets agricultural voters, pledging to “[s]upport New Jersey farms’ efforts to deal with extreme weather and a changing climate, especially small, family farms that increasingly have come under threat.”
While some inside-the-Beltway pundits complain about Democratic candidates talking “too much” about climate change and clean energy, it is heartening to see candidates like Bennett connecting with her grassroots supporters precisely by showing her commitment to pursue commonsense environmental policy positions.
Yes, people in farm country care about the environment too and one candidate well-suited to speak to their concerns is regenerative farmer Jamie Ager, a candidate to represent Western North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District. This district has been the target of Republican redistricting for years, in order to split up the strongly Democratic city of Asheville. Still, with a strong and interesting candidate like Ager, and the Republican candidate Chuck Edwards mired in a sex scandal, Democrats have some hope of prevailing in this contest.
Ager is the CEO and Co-Founder of Hickory Nut Gap Farms, which “practices Holistic Management, which involves planned grazing, careful observation, and frequent movement of herds.” The farm’s website goes into detail on its practices to keep soil healthy through such means as rotational grazing and the use of biodiversity and cover crops.
Appropriately then, in his campaign website, Ager makes the economic case for living in harmony with nature, “Our public lands aren’t just our beautiful backyard — they are our lifeline, a strong economic engine, and long-standing connection to our culture. And they are a resource that we must steward wisely.” Drawing on his own experience, he states: “Agriculture is a place where we can find bipartisan solutions to building a better food system that is good for farmers, good for the land, and creates healthy outcomes for our communities.”
Considering the massive impact of agriculture on our environment, from climate to water quality, I think that having a member of Congress who has personally proven regenerative techniques on his own farm would be pretty darn cool.
Democratic candidate for Wisconsin’s 3rd District Rebecca Cooke highlights her childhood growing up on her family’s dairy farm and her own working-class status as a waitress making $8/hour. Yet her grassroots-based campaign also includes a strong environmental focus. As she states on her campaign website “From roundtables in rural corners of this district to downtown discussions in Eau Claire, La Crosse or Point – it’s clear that climate change and the environment are top of mind for constituents – what kind of legacy are we leaving for our children and grandchildren?”
From there, she makes a number of specific pledges, including:
- “Draw federal funds for investment in green energy projects that harness our natural resources like wind, solar and hydro energy. Ensure that as we build new clean infrastructure, we’re relying on union workers to build our future.”
- “Forge relationships and build coalitions with Wisconsin farmers to address issues with run-off that directly impact water ways creating issues with nitrates and algae blooms.”
- “Invest in mass transit – like the elusive high-speed rail we’ve been working to connect west central Wisconsin to bigger marketplaces – increasing tourism and lowering emissions from commutes.”
In addition to her clear interest in these issues, Cooke – like a number of other candidates profiled here – would bring a working-class rural sensibility to an environmental field too easily stereotyped as the province of white collar urbanites and suburbanites.
Arizona’s 6th Congressional District, largely made up of Tucson’s suburbs, is politically divided nearly 50-50. It has a large military presence thanks to Fort Huachuca, which fits with candidate Jo Mendoza’s profile as a Marine veteran who did tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Mendoza discusses several environmental issues on her campaign website. Water security is an obvious topic in this desert area, for which she pledges to clean up PFAS contamination and protect groundwater and water infrastructure. She also brings up “new industries like data centers,” promising to “fight to make sure that these industries bring their own energy and don’t drive up costs for Arizonans.”
She also states that she “will support investments in American-made energy, including clean energy, which will save money for ratepayers…[and] stand up and protect local solar projects that bring energy online faster, lower costs, and reduce harmful pollution in our air.”
Summing up the principles she will use to approach energy and environmental issues, Mendoza states “Having grown up in rural Arizona, JoAnna knows that rising energy costs and water shortages put real pressure on families, farmers, and rural communities. She believes Arizona can lead the way in building a more affordable, reliable, and self-sufficient future.”
Democratic Candidate for Iowa’s 3rd District, Sarah Trone Garriott, has been a member of the Iowa State Senate since 2020. Her campaign webpage statement on the environment blends several key environmental perspectives.
First, conservation, about which she says “Our family farms, open spaces, and rivers are part of what makes Iowa special—and they’re under threat. I’ve worked with conservation groups across the state to protect clean water and expand access to public lands.”
She then pivots to forward looking policies: “In Congress, I’ll support investments in clean energy like wind, solar, and biofuels—which already power thousands of Iowa jobs—and I’ll work with farmers to promote sustainable practices that keep our soil healthy and our water safe.”
Trone Garriott concludes: “We can tackle climate change and strengthen our economy at the same time.” I agree that conservation, sustainable land use and clean energy investment should all be brought together into one strategy which mitigates greenhouse gas emissions even as it brings direct environmental and economic benefits. And it is helpful to have elected officials who understand these synergies.
You can bet that a place with a name like “Carbon County” has a history with the coal industry and that is the case with the Eastern Pennsylvania region covered by the 7th Congressional District. But candidate Bob Brooks’ working class populist agenda (he is a firefighter) is firmly focused on the future.
On energy, his website states: “We need energy that works for working families, not just big oil companies. That means creating good-paying union jobs in clean energy, protecting our air and water, taking on the climate crisis, and investing in the industries of tomorrow.” He also questions “unrestricted warehouse and data center development” happening in the area, from which he promises to protect his constituents.
And Brooks pledges “to hold the EPA accountable and push for stricter federal oversight for pollution like sewage sludge and mine refuse.” Here is another candidate whose blue-collar perspective on the environment would provide a useful addition to a Congress with too few such voices.
Candidate for New York’s 17th Congressional District, covering the lower Hudson Valley, is an Army veteran who graduated from West Point, did tours in Iraq and Afghanistan and served as Director for Counterterrorism on the National Security Council. This makes her focus on “Fighting Climate Change as a National Security Priority” particularly significant.
As she notes in her biography, she worked with Congress on national security issues like “strengthening the cyber and physical security of our nation’s critical infrastructure, including the water we drink [and] the energy that powers our homes.” Along these lines, Conley emphasizes rebuilding our infrastructure and calls for “[a]ddressing PFAS and other toxic contamination in our water supply by increasing testing, accelerating cleanup, and holding the corporations responsible for the pollution accountable.”
She proposes “[i]ncreasing our energy supply…by investing in energy projects that utilize the Hudson Valley’s natural resources, like wind, solar, hydro, and geothermal energy, that can help lower energy bills today.” Conley also emphasizes the importance of “[l]owering electric bills by taking on corporate utility giants and forcing greater accountability from electrical companies so they spend their profits on modernizing and replacing our outdated electrical grid.”
Her conclusion that “the same fight we apply to protecting Americans from terrorism and foreign adversaries must now be applied to fighting climate change” is a unique perspective and an important message from a recipient of three Bronze Stars who has literally fought for her country. It would be a welcome addition to a Washington, D.C. where climate, clean energy and national security policy have all gone stale.
Bonus Virginia Candidate – Tom Perriello (VA-5)
But how about Virginians looking for a local to support? The best choice IMHO would be Tom Perriello, running to reclaim his former Congressional seat in Virginia’s 5th District.
Unlike most of the toss-up races above, the 5th will admittedly be a tough one. While it includes blue Charlottesville, the district overall voted for Trump in 2024 by 12 points and for bigtime loser Winsome Sears for governor in 2025 by 7 points. But a 12-point swing would be in line with some of the lobsided special election victories Democrats have won over the past year. It’s possible in a wave year with a strong campaign.
On his website, Perriello mentions two energy/environmental issues dear to the hearts of many Virginia environmentalists:
- “…he was the first statewide Democrat to refuse corporate donations, even from the powerful monopolies that fund both parties in Virginia and then jack up electric bills for the people.” [hint, hint: Dominion!]
- “He fought side by side with communities throughout the Blue Ridge to defeat the Atlantic Coast Pipeline and to land good-paying clean energy jobs.”
When Perriello ran for governor in 2017, he posted a Medium piece called 13 Ways I Will Fight For Virginia’s Environment. He discussed the “existential threat” of climate change and laid out a series of policy positions ranging from support for clean energy deployment to protecting the Chesapeake Bay, critical water infrastructure and the state’s land and natural resources. Though tailored to a statewide rather than national position, it is a helpful summary of his views on clean energy and the environment.
When he served in Congress (2008-2010), Perriello voted to support the unsuccessful Waxman-Markey Act to mitigate climate change and the very successful American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which helped propel the clean energy sector to exponential growth. He lost his seat by refusing to avoid these tough votes or a vote for Obamacare. There is a lot of hunger among voters this year for a courageous, unapologetic fighter like him.
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A helpful source for more information on all of these candidates (except Perriello), including video interviews, is political commentator and activist Simon Rosenberg’s Hopium Chronicles, which includes an ActBlue page to contribute to them and other swing district candidates he has endorsed. And now that I am no longer bound by the Hatch Act, I can legally say that!
Anyway, the hope these candidates offer for a brighter, healthier, more sustainable future is a far superior choice vs. falling into cynicism, surrender or despair. I will be supporting them and hope to see at least some of them prevail and become future national leaders taking concrete actions to build a better world for our children and future generations. Feel free to join me on that.
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