Democrats swept the US House and Senate in Tuesday’s midterm elections, a result that climate NGOs say has important indirect implications for the US’ stance and behaviour towards the Net Zero Framework (NZF) at the IMO.
“U.S. voters are rejecting backward energy policies that drove up household costs and undoubtedly accelerated the effects of climate disasters,” Jamie Yates, Climate & Renewable Energy Manager at Pacific Environment, said.
“At every turn, the Trump administration has tried to put the brakes on global shipping decarbonization.”
“The United States, the biggest opponent to the IMO Net Zero Framework last year, has just held an election that signals a far greater interest in climate action than we might have thought,” Aoife O’Leary, CEO of Opportunity Green, said.
“The Trump Administration lost a mandate to continue its obstructive stance at the IMO.
“This creates space for others to step up and get the Net-Zero Framework adopted later this month.”
The US has opposed the NZF since its introduction and led efforts last October to delay its adoption by a year
The Trump administration also threatened retaliatory measures against countries supporting the framework.
In a speech at the UN in September, Trump said he would not allow a global carbon tax while he was president.
Despite the Democrats' victory, President Donald Trump is expected to remain in office until 2029, and it remains to be seen whether the election results will influence or soften his administration's stance towards the NZF.
The IMO is set to debate the adoption of the NZF during technical negotiations from November 23-27, followed by a Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) meeting from November 30 to December 4.
