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Sierra Club's Political Program Role of energy in elections More Wind in Forecast: Never before have so many wind turbines starred in political ads or so many candidates run for office touting renewable energy. Americans voted for change and new leadership that will move our nation in a dramatically different direction. During the election, energy surfaced as a defining issue and a deciding factor that helped fuel the demand for change. While it was clear that Iraq was the issue uppermost in voters' minds, energy issues clearly played a pivotal role in 2006. Findings reflect the fact that more candidates --of both parties -- ran on, and ran paid ads on, energy issues. And voters heard these ads. According to a study by the Campaign for America's Future of candidate's television ads in 2006, "Energy independence has surfaced as a defining issue in the current elections. Judging from their TV ads, candidates of both major parties appear to have converged on the idea that America must reduce its dependence on imported oil... Doing so...will make our country more secure, save consumers money, protect the environment, and create good jobs." Excerpts from paid political ads in the 2006 election provide a good read on the current state of the debate: "This windmill farm will make America less dependent of foreign oil." -- Senator Maria Cantwell, D-WA I will "promote alternative fuels like ethanol, hybrids and hydrogen." -- Mark Kennedy, Minnesota Republican for U.S. Senate "My economic plan protects our air and water and creates jobs in a New Energy Economy." -- Bill Ritter, Colorado Democrat for Governor "I'll work to get rid of subsidies to oil companies and invest instead in alternative energy and fight global warming." -- Patricia Madrid, New Mexico Democrat for Congress "We need to redeploy our troops out of Iraq and be independent of foreign oil and we need to develop alternative sources of energy to create jobs and make America more secure." -- Ed Perlmutter, Colorado Democrat for Congress "We need a new direction here at home. This administration rewards big oil. Instead we must invest in reducing the price of gas by creating new technologies and jobs right here at home." -- Kirsten Gillibrand, New York Democrat for Congress Up to Top HOME | Email Signup | About Us | Contact Us | Terms of Use