Tuesday’s elections will offer the first large-scale test of energy and climate politics in the second Trump administration, particularly in states like Virginia and New Jersey.
Voters will head to the polls as rising utility bills catapult energy into the top tier of campaign issues. The results could shape next year’s midterm messaging, when 36 governorships and control of Congress will be on the line.
Cost-of-living issues dogged Democrats during the Biden administration, but they now hope to turn that same dynamic against Republicans as President Donald Trump rescinds billions of dollars in energy funding and blocks construction of renewable projects.
“Electricity might just be the new eggs in this moment of economic affordability concerns,” said Charles Hua, founder and executive director of the consumer advocacy group PowerLines.
