Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios
Let's examine the newly elected lawmakers who could influence energy and climate policy next Congress.
Why it matters: The 119th Congress is going to look a lot different, with fresh faces on the important committees.
Senate
John Curtis (R-Utah)
Curtis brings a moderate image on climate issues to replace the retiring Mitt Romney.
- He founded the Conservative Climate Caucus as a three-term House member and cosponsored the PROVE IT Act, as well as legislation to boost geothermal, which has big prospects in Utah.
- He's generally a go-to for reporters and lobbyists looking for a Republican with a pro-climate —but still anti-regulatory — take.
- Curtis recently told Axios he's looking to serve on the Environment and Public Works Committee.
Jim Justice (R-W.Va.)
Justice (owner of Babydog) will be a staunch defender of his state's fossil fuel industry.
- Justice is a two-term governor whose family has long been involved in the coal business. The companies he owns have faced a series of legal issues, including a federal lawsuit over unpaid safety and environmental fines.
- He once supported Sen. Joe Manchin, the man he'll replace. But he criticized the IRA, at one point saying that Manchin "had to be completely out of his mind to go along with this."
Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.)
Slotkin, first elected to the House in 2018, won a Senate race in which EPA tailpipe rules and electric vehicles became a central issue.
- In the Senate, she'll be a key defender of her state's auto industry — much like retiring Sen. Debbie Stabenow — and will likely be a player in the ongoing debate about the fate of the EV tax credit.
- She opposed GOP efforts on the House floor to put additional restrictions on (and possibly kill) the EV credit.
House
Julie Fedorchak (R-N.D.)
Fedorchak, a state utility regulator since 2013 and the first woman to represent North Dakota in the House, won with nearly 70% of the vote on a campaign slogan of bringing "fresh energy" to D.C. on behalf of her resource-rich state.
- The power grid is on a "pathway to disaster" as round-the-clock power plants like coal and nuclear have shut down faster than they can be replaced, she told Axios.
- Fedorchak wants more federal incentives to bring new power online, including faster permitting of nuclear reactors and more state input to improve infrastructure permitting.
Nick Begich (R-Alaska)
Begich ousted Mary Peltola with a campaign that centered heavily on who would better advocate for Alaskan oil drilling and resource development.
- He portrayed himself as tight with Donald Trump and a friend of the industry during an August debate: "The Democrats have it out for Alaska oil and gas."
Kristen McDonald Rivet (D-Mich.)
McDonald Rivet won a tossup race by nearly 7 percentage points in the heart of blue-collar automaking country.
- As a Michigan state senator, she led a successful effort in the state's 2023 climate bill to smooth permitting of solar projects on farmland.
- She'll be a key Democratic voice in the debate over EV and manufacturing tax credits as GOP-controlled reconciliation talks heat up.
