Earth Action: Register to Vote

Over the past 50 years, all significant federal environmental regulations, such as the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the Inflation Reduction Act’s climate measures, are being revised, weakened, or dismantled. The individuals responsible for these changes were elected. The future of U.S. environmental policy will be determined by the elections on November 3, 2026.

Voter registration is crucial for participating in this decision-making process. In 2026, it faces unique challenges. A federal bill requiring proof of citizenship for registration passed the House in February and is under Senate debate. Meanwhile, several states have implemented similar laws. Regardless of your state’s registration laws, the advice is consistent: verify your registration status now, address any issues, and avoid waiting until October.

Why Voting Is an Environmental Action

Individual sustainability efforts, like recycling, reducing driving, eating a plant-based diet, and using heat pumps, contribute significantly to environmental improvement. However, the most powerful tool Americans have to influence environmental policies is voting.

Laws provide a societal voice often overlooked by private enterprises. A municipal waste contract incentivizing material recovery over landfilling achieves more than individual sorting efforts. State building codes mandating heat pumps in new constructions surpass voluntary retrofits. Congressional fuel-efficiency standards and EPA regulations impact emissions on a scale that individual driving choices cannot. The League of Conservation Voters asserts that major environmental challenges need political solutions.

Voting drives these solutions, shaping society’s impact on climate, biodiversity, and the quality of life for future generations. The standards set by votes today will be known to future generations.

Local elections are as crucial as federal ones for environmental outcomes. City councils determine zoning, affecting whether neighborhoods are walkable or car-dependent. County commissions make decisions on landfills, solar farms, and watershed protection. School boards approve electric bus purchases. State legislatures dictate utility regulations, building codes, and waste systems. These races, often not on presidential ballots, are decided by voter turnout in the tens of thousands.

What’s on the Ballot in 2026

November 3, 2026, marks the federal midterm elections. All 435 U.S. House seats and 35 of the 100 Senate seats are up for election, along with 39 governorships across 36 states and 3 territories. Primary elections, decisive in many districts, occur from spring to September.

The environmental stakes are tangible. The Trump administration utilized executive action to reduce vehicle emissions standards, open public lands for oil and gas leasing, weaken endangered species protections, and retract or halt Inflation Reduction Act climate funding. Whether these actions persist, intensify, or are halted significantly depends on which party controls Congress in 2027. The Yale Program on Climate Change Communication highlights that 2026 will influence the final two years of climate policy under the current administration, impacting energy reliability, affordability, disaster resilience, and FEMA funding.

The environmental voter base is larger than recent turnout indicates. The Environmental Voter Project estimates millions of registered voters prioritizing climate or the environment do not vote consistently, especially in midterm and local elections. Expanding this electorate starts with ensuring you are part of it.

How to Register and Why to Do It Now

Each state determines its voter registration rules, which are changing faster than in decades. As of March 2026, 43 states and the District of Columbia offer online voter registration; 22 states plus D.C. provide same-day registration at the polls during early voting or on Election Day. North Dakota does not require registration.

Eleven states — Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Ohio, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming — have laws necessitating documentary proof of citizenship for registration in certain cases. A passport, a certified birth certificate, or in some states, a REAL ID with citizenship marked, will meet these requirements. A standard driver’s license typically will not suffice for voter registration.

Federally, the SAVE Act, passed by the House in February 2026 and currently in the Senate, proposes extending documentary-proof-of-citizenship requirements to all federal voter registrations, effectively ending most online and mail-in registrations. The Center for American Progress estimates around 146 million American citizens lack a valid passport, and millions more do not have easy access to a certified birth certificate matching their legal name. Regardless of the bill’s outcome, confirming your registration and preparing citizenship documents before rules change is wise.

Three Steps to Take Today

1. Check your registration. Use the federal vote.gov registration tool to verify your registration at your current address. Moving, changing your name, or missing recent elections could flag or cancel your registration.
2. Register or update your registration. Most states allow online updates. If not, vote.gov guides you to a mailable National Mail Voter Registration Form. Texas, New Hampshire, North Dakota, and Wyoming have state-specific forms, linked on vote.gov.
3. Find your state’s deadlines and rules. Your state or local election office maintains updated information on registration deadlines, ID requirements, primary dates, and polling locations. Bookmark it for reference.
4. Make a voting plan. Decide the date, time, method (in-person early, in-person Election Day, or by mail), and route to your polling place. Voters with a plan have higher turnout rates than those who plan later.

Environmental policies are set by elected officials chosen by voters. Registering is the first step in influencing laws, regulations, and investments for our future.

Editor’s Note: Originally authored by Gemma Alexander on May 27, 2022, this article was substantially updated in May 2026.