Democrats won control of both the US House of Representatives and the Senate in the midterm elections, according to the report. The report says this is a sharp swing from Donald Trump's victory two years earlier.
The report says big federal climate and energy shifts are unlikely in the near term. Trump remains in the White House, and neither chamber has the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto. Any new legislation would need his signature.
The report points to permitting reform as a bill to watch. It describes a bipartisan Senate package, the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act, which aims to speed up how energy projects are reviewed and approved. The Senate was set to vote on it on November 9. The report says Democrats might wait until next year to renegotiate it, and that it would still need to pass muster with Trump.
The report expects more congressional scrutiny of Trump's agencies. It says Democratic leaders have signaled plans to go after EPA commissioner Lee Zeldin over staff and investment cuts, and that Democrats will have the power to subpoena cabinet members.
The report says state and local action may matter more. It states that Democrats swept local control of Pennsylvania, and that officials there have signaled plans to support renewable energy and cut greenhouse-gas emissions. It also says Democrats took control of the Georgia Public Service Commission for the first time in 30 years, a body that regulates electric utilities.
According to tracking from Ballotpedia cited in the report, 41 local ballot questions concerned data centers, and voters overwhelmingly chose to restrict development. The report says nearly every measure appeared headed toward defeat for data center projects as of the morning of November 4. It also reports that Democrat Gina Hinojosa won the Texas governor's seat, defeating Republican incumbent Greg Abbott. During her campaign, Hinojosa called for a law to pause data center development entirely.