Most Americans support government action to stop climate change


A new poll from The New York Times found that a majority of Americans, including almost half of Republicans, support government action to stop climate change. Seventy-seven percent of Americans said the federal government "should be doing a substantial amount to combat climate change," according to the Times.
The Times conducted the poll in conjunction with Stanford University and the nonpartisan environmental research group Resources for the Future. The poll, which surveyed 1,006 adults from Jan. 7-22, could affect 2016 presidential campaigns — two-thirds of Americans said they were more likely to vote for candidates whose campaign platforms included fighting climate change.
Climate change wasn't a deciding factor in the respondents' votes, but it does influence their decision, according to the Times. Sixty-seven percent of respondents, including 48 percent of Republicans, said they were less likely to vote for candidates who denied that humans are the cause of climate change.
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Meghan DeMaria is a staff writer at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked for USA Today and Marie Claire.
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