By Ricardo Pereira • Chapter Political Chair
The stakes for the 2026 congressional election couldn’t be higher. Every year, drastic climate action becomes more and more necessary. Yet, since returning to the presidency, Trump and his administration have implemented a sweeping deregulatory agenda, turning back the clock on decades of environmental progress. Their destructive actions over the last two years could fill a book.
The Trump administration has shrunk the EPA’s regulatory oversight. They’ve rolled back scores of environmental rules governing everything from allowable carbon emissions and air quality standards to water quality protections and industrial waste discharge. All of us will suffer as a result.
A significant amount of federally sponsored climate change research has been halted—both in the public and private sectors. Funds have been slashed for NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Department of Energy, and the EPA, and vital science advisory panels have been disbanded.
By targeting foreign aid programs, the Trump administration has crippled international environmental protections, conservation, and climate adaptation. Even rainforest protection programs in the Amazon and Africa have been disrupted.
The United States has also left multiple international accords, such as the Paris Agreement on climate change, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The Trump administration has deemed these partnerships “contrary to US interests,” but in withdrawing, the United States has severely undermined our chances for timely climate change intervention.
Additionally, the Trump administration has expanded fossil fuel drilling and fracking, destroyed wildlife protections, desecrated national monuments, expanded commercial fishing into marine sanctuaries, and extended logging into pristine forests, such as the Tongass in Alaska.
Meanwhile, data centers threaten to consume much of our energy and water supplies, and federal oversight is unlikely to come.
These changes undo decades of progressive action and run counter to the mission of the EPA. They present real, tangible danger for the immediate future of Americans and show no signs of abating.
For two years, Congress has sidestepped its vital role in implementing laws, funding, and regulations that shape our nation’s responses to environmental crises. Congress continues to hold power over policy, priorities, and actions, but it needs to act. This moment is an inflection point for environmental protection. Who we send to Congress matters.
The New Jersey Chapter of the Sierra Club has identified key candidates in this election who have shown the willingness and potential to support a healthy, sustainable environment. Our endorsements reflect their records, positions, and responses to our endorsement process. See the box at right for the candidates we have endorsed for Congress in 2026. Please vote for these recommended candidates, and keep an eye open for additional endorsements leading up to the election.