November 7, 2020

350 Action on Joe Biden presidential victory

Washington, DC — Joe Biden has been declared the next President of the United States. While Donald Trump continues to contest the results, it is clear that the voters have decided: Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have won. Biden has won more votes than any Presidential candidate in U.S. history. In a tight race in key swing states, we saw Biden take lead in Georgia and Pennsylvania. Georgia last voted for a Democratic president in 1992.

Across the nation, we witnessed record high turnout. We owe this win to Black, Indigenous, young people of color, and new immigrant voters who flooded the polls despite significant barriers to fight for a better future for all of us. There are still votes being counted by local election officials, and every vote counted is a vote for our democracy. 

350 Action North America Director Tamara Toles O’Laughlin issued this following statement:

“We, the voters, decided this! By working together, our unapologetic movement for people and planet has been steadfast and patient as our votes were counted. People power stood up to Donald Trump’s fascist vision for America and elected Joe Biden and Kamala Harris into the White House. The government we chose must be sworn in because this is the people’s democracy.

“Today, we moved the needle to halt the harm to make space for care and repair. We are the majority: the majority committed to real solutions and an America that works for all;  to a fossil fuel free world; to democracy thriving. Our endorsement of Biden and Harris was a commitment to hold them accountable to the demands of our growing movement. The United States remains a deeply divided country with work to do, including paying reparations to address injustice, defeating the crutch of white supremacy, and building multiracial, multigenerational solidarity for all of our best interests. Now that we’ve stopped Trump’s reign, we look forward to working with the Biden-Harris Administration to transform America.

This election season has been marred by ongoing voter suppression, including in the form of fires, hurricanes, and more climate disasters. While Trump continues to cast disinformation, 350 Action is rising in solidarity across movements for justice to protect our democracy and our communities. The climate crisis was a top issue in this election, with 7/10 voters supporting the government to take transformative action on climate breakdown. 

350 Action is committed to continuing to fight for an anti-racist vision of America, where we acknowledge, reckon, and repair the colonialist founding of our country, and build a nation where everyone is treated equitably with dignity and respect. 

350 Action Executive Director May Boeve offered the following:

“With record-breaking turn-out, voters have officially chosen Biden and Harris to move us forward toward a better future. The will of the  people is clear. This victory would not have been possible without the relentless and visionary work of the thousands of climate justice organizers who put it all on the line to make climate central in this election. Defeating Trump means we’re on the offensive in the fight for climate justice. Now’s our time to rebuild the United States into a country that upholds all of our needs, respects civil liberties and human dignity, puts peoples’ health first, and tackles the multiple crises we face. From climate disasters, to racial and economic injustice, to homelessness and a failed healthcare system, Biden and Harris must work with global leaders to protect democracy and push for a just recovery from these compound crises.

“Far too many people still voted for Trump: his violence- and hate-provoking appeal to millions of Americans reveals how much work we have to do to dismantle systems of oppression, many of which also drive climate change. After four years of Trump rolling back climate and community protections and finding tax loopholes for the rich, Trump’s legacy is extreme negligence, deaths of over 200,000 people from COVID-19, and a climate criminal record to be measured over millennia.”

350 Action and local groups are joining the #VotersDecided day of action today, Saturday, November 7th, supporting mass mobilizations and distributed actions across the country. The Protect the Results is a network of over 165 groups mobilizing millions of Americans, with over 520 #CountEveryVote #VotersDecided rallies scheduled.

350.org and 350 Action are working to ensure that Biden and Harris reverse over a 100 environmental and climate protection rollbacks from the last four years. We have clear demands for Biden and Harris’ first 100 days in office; and we will mobilize to ensure our communities right to a healthy planet and a liveable future. This means: 

    • Keep fossil fuels in the ground, including honoring Indigenous rights and stopping the Keystone XL pipeline for good; and ending fracking; 
    • Hold billionaires and polluters accountable for the climate crisis;
    • Immediately re-join the Paris agreement and commit to going far beyond its already-short commitments, given Donald Trump officially exited the US from the agreement
    • And fully back a Green New Deal roadmap that transitions us off fossil fuels, creates millions of good, union jobs, and builds a world where all of us are safe from climate disasters.

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NOTES TO THE EDITOR:

350 Action spokespeople are available for interview.

Press Contact: Lindsay Meiman, 347-460-9082, [email protected]