Climate voters, Chinese overcapacity, and more

Introducing a new highly sophisticated poll to better understand climate voters

We’re 45 days away from one of the most consequential elections for both domestic and global climate policy. There’s a lot on the line this November when it comes to climate progress.

This morning, I want to ask all of you a simple question: Who do you plan to vote for this November?

(Please only vote if you’re an eligible U.S. voter)

Will this poll end up being used in Nate Silver’s election model. Probably not! 14,000 of you read the Distilled newsletter each week, which is a lot. But it’s probably not enough to provide any kind of statistical significance.

Still, I wonder how many people who read a newsletter dedicated to climate journalism plan to vote? Who do they plan to vote for? Maybe the results can tell us something about climate voters.

I’d also love to hear from you via email—especially if you plan to vote for Donald Trump, a third-party candidate, no one at all, or if you’re still undecided. (I won’t publish your response without asking for approval). You can respond to this email or reach me at michael (at) distilled.earth

Next week, as a bit of bonus content, I’ll share the results of this poll with our paid subscribers and some anonymized responses (from those that are comfortable with it).

Does the world have too many cheap solar panels?

In Part 2 of today’s newsletter, I want to share some great reporting and debate that I’ve been reading and listening to recently. It’s about what I’ve come to see as one of the most important stories in global politics, economics, and climate policy: China’s surging exports of everything from solar panels to electric vehicles.

What happens in China impacts the rest of the world—more so than almost any other country. And right now, there’s a lot happening in China.

For the last few years, China’s economy has been slowing. With less demand internally, Chinese manufacturers are shipping their products to countries around the world. And not in small numbers either, as this chart from the New York Times shows.