WASHINGTON, October 8, 2026 — We are two days past our most recent board meeting, and only 26 days away from Election Day. As you might expect, the looming elections were a major backdrop to many of the discussions with our Board.
The president in power looms large over every midterm election, and that is certainly the case this year. President Trump’s approval rating is historically bad, and it’s being driven by voters’ concerns over the high cost of living, and their perception that he isn’t focused on doing anything to fix it. His approval marks on the economy are the anchor that is pulling down his overall numbers.
Energy plays a role here, and it’s not just gas prices. Our friends at Energy Innovation just unveiled modeling showing that energy costs in the continental U.S. are expected to skyrocket with households paying approximately $650 more each year. EDF Action PAC has begun deploying staff and volunteers in key races, and we’re already hearing how energy costs are shaping conversations on the ground. A colleague knocking doors for Sherrod Brown in Ohio this week reported to me that she’s never seen home energy bills show up in so many conversations on people’s front doorsteps.
EDF Action and our partners are deeply engaged in this election, pitching in at meaningful scale to help our priority candidates win. But what does winning get us? That was another topic of substantial discussion at our board meeting.
Most of what Trump has done has been through executive action, and much of it EDF is fighting in court because we believe it to be illegal. For example, take this explosive New York Times story, based on records requests and investigative work by EDF, showing that Trump’s orders to force retiring coal power plants to remain open came at the behest of the coal industry. To use a football analogy, Big Coal was down late in the game, and threw up a desperation “Hail Mary,” and the Trump administration eagerly caught the ball.
EDF Action’s work to elect more pro-environment candidates this November gets us more partners in this push for accountability. Senior Trump officials can expect to testify repeatedly before Congress to defend their choices – especially for executive actions that so brazenly disregard the law and are costing Americans so much money.
