Democrats pledge climate action at COP31 despite Trump’s absence

Photo by Sandro Basili/Abaca/Sipa USA(Sipa via AP Images)

Fresh from their US midterm election triumph, an emboldened group of Democratic lawmakers descended on the COP31 climate talks shunned by President Donald Trump on Saturday to signal their commitment to tackling global warming.

The 18-strong delegation joined the annual UN conference in Turkey after their party regained control of both chambers of Congress in a landslide victory last week cheered by climate campaigners.

“Many of our allies and partners across the world think the United States has not been predictable or dependable. So we have a lot of trust to earn back,” Florida Representative Kathy Castor told AFP.

“We have so much work to do. And yes, I hope the United States gets back on track with urgent climate action,” she said after the group took photos in front of a large COP31 sign in a sprawling expo centre.

The election has been a topic of discussion at COP31 in Antalya, with hopes that Democrats can restore some clean energy policies and that a pro-climate president can be elected in two years.

“What happened in the US is remarkable, and a much needed shift that we all needed, not only from a climate perspective, but overall,” Harjeet Singh, strategic advisor to the Fossil Fuel Treaty Initiative, told AFP.

Since taking office in January 2025, Trump has rolled back some of the clean energy policies of his predecessors, promoted oil drilling, pulled the United States out of the Paris Agreement and kept his country out of the UN’s climate negotiations.

“It is absolutely shameful that the Trump administration operates this way, that this is an administration that is filled with climate deniers, that is beholden to big oil in the United States,” Yassamin Ansari, an Arizona lawmaker, told AFP.

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Ansari and other members of the delegation spoke at a panel focused on the midterm elections, attracting a crowd that overflowed outside the “America Is All In” pavilion.

The group reminded COP31 delegates that, while Trump has rejected clean energy, US states and local governments have continued to promote renewables and other pro-climate policies.

A group of US mayors and governors visited COP31 earlier this week, along with former US vice president Al Gore and former US climate envoy and secretary of state John Kerry.

“Despite the setbacks that we’re experiencing through this Trump administration, climate action is alive in America,” California Congressman Raul Ruiz told the panel.

The president’s Republican Party was handed a resounding defeat last week in large part due to anger over soaring energy prices and Trump’s costly war with Iran.

Democrats have vowed to use their majority in the House and the Senate to launch investigations into the administration’s climate policies and propose clean energy legislation.

But Trump still has two years left in office and has vowed to wield his veto power.

“At a time where Americans from all political backgrounds want to see their energy bills reduced, this administration will be very hard pressed to veto legislation that will bring down costs for the American people,” Ansari said.