Overlooked in Climate Politics: October 2025
Welcome to Overlooked in Climate Politics, the Environmental Voter Project’s newsletter with a quick rundown of 3 under-reported stories in climate politics. Please forward this to your friends — they can subscribe here! In this edition, we spotlight three November 2025 elections that could have a significant impact on climate policy-making. Of course, this fall’s prominent gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia are also crucially important to the climate movement, but the following elections aren’t getting as much attention.
Yes, Georgia’s Public Service Commission election is very important.
Two of the five seats on Georgia’s Public Service Commission (PSC) are up for election on November 4th. PSCs are state bodies that regulate utilities, and Georgia’s 5-member PSC oversees telecommunications, electric, and natural gas services, sets rates for how much utilities can charge consumers, and approves plans for future energy generation. The commission’s decisions directly affect greenhouse gas emissions and whether Georgia transitions to a clean energy economy. Georgia has become one of the nation’s closest swing states, and it’s anybody’s guess whether off-year turnout will lean Republican or Democrat. Early voting begins October 14th.
Public transit is on the ballot for 1 million North Carolinians.
Mecklenburg County, NC is home to over 1.1 million people, including the 14th largest city in the United States: Charlotte. On November 4th, Mecklenburg County residents will vote on whether to increase their sales tax by 1% — a funding stream that would provide almost $20 billion over 30 years, most of which would fund expansion of existing light rail and a significant extension of bus service. Early voting begins October 16th.
California’s Prop 50 is a climate election.
In response to partisan, mid-decade Republican redistricting in states like Texas, California has responded with its own partisan redistricting proposal that could net Democrats an additional 5 seats in the US House of Representatives during the 2026 midterm elections. Currently, Republicans hold a slim 219-213 margin in the US House (with 3 vacancies), so a 5-seat gain for Democrats would be significant. Most analysts expect that Democratic control of the US House would provide a bulwark against further attacks on clean energy and environmental protections. Early voting in California began on October 6th.
How You Can Take Action
Join the Environmental Voter Project on Zoom to mobilize low propensity environmental voters for the upcoming Georgia Public Service Commission election and the Mecklenburg County ballot measure! Sign up for our phonebanks using scripts proven to boost turnout: Georgia: October 14th at 12pm ET / 9am PT, Georgia: October 15th at 7pm ET / 4pm PT, Mecklenburg County, NC: October 16th at 6pm ET / 3pm PT, and Mecklenburg County, NC: October 24th at 12pm ET / 9am PT. We’ll also be calling into Georgia and North Carolina throughout our Oct. 31 - Nov. 4 GOTV phonebanks. Training provided — please join us! EVP doesn’t currently work in California.
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