Environment Maryland Announces Pro-Environment Choices For 2012 Elections

Baltimore—Environment Maryland announced its endorsements for the 2012 election season, shining a spotlight on key pro-environment candidates for Congress and the White House.

“When it comes to the air we breathe, the water we drink and the places we love, elections matter. Environment Maryland is proud to endorse President Obama, Sen. Cardin, Rep. Van Hollen, Rep. Edwards, Rep. Sarbanes, and Rep. Cummings. All of them deserve our support as the right choices for voters who care about the Chesapeake Bay, healthy air, clean energy, solving global warming and protecting our most treasured natural spaces,” said Tommy Landers, director of Environment Maryland.

Environment Maryland endorses the following candidates:

President Barack Obama: President Obama has aggressively protected our families’ health by tackling pollution that threatens the quality of our air and our water. He has advanced policies to dramatically reduce our dependence on oil and has doubled the nation’s reliance on clean renewable energy. To move America toward a clean energy future, protect our environment and health, and ensure the U.S. does our part to combat global warming, President Barack Obama gets Environment Maryland’s enthusiastic support.

Senator Ben Cardin: Sen. Cardin has been a champion for Maryland’s environment, leading the charge to restore the Chesapeake Bay, clean up our air, and defend environmental protections from being rolled back in Congress. In addition to a 100% voting record on environmental issues (from Environment America’s scorecard), Sen. Cardin has taken the lead on comprehensive legislation to revitalize the Chesapeake Bay.

Representative Chris Van Hollen: Rep. Van Hollen has shown tremendous leadership on the environment. He has authored and won critical funding for Chesapeake Bay restoration programs. He has fought hard for historic legislation to tackle global warming, and he has continually been an outspoken and powerful advocate for commonsense, critical environmental protections. His environmental voting record is an impressive 99%.

Representative John Sarbanes: Time and again, Rep. Sarbanes has spoken out loud and clear for strong measures to tackle climate change, restore the Bay, and promote a clean energy economy.  He has spearheaded legislation to help educate Maryland’s youth about environmental issues by ensuring they spend time outdoors. He has fought in the halls of Congress for stronger environmental protections, and he has helped bring advocates to the table to achieve solutions to our environmental challenges. His voting score is an impressive 97%.

Representative Donna Edwards: Rep. Edwards has led the charge on legislation to promote environmentally sound infrastructure, and she has been a vocal advocate in House committees and on the floor for commonsense solutions to an array of environmental challenges faced by Marylanders. She has fought hard for public transit.  Her environmental voting record is a nearly impeccable 98%.

Representative Elijah Cummings: Rep. Cummings has championed Chesapeake Bay restoration legislation in the House of Representatives, and he has been a staunch and vocal advocate for clean water, clean air and a healthy environment for all Marylanders. He has a nearly perfect voting record of 99%.

“With the polluter lobby spending inordinate amounts of campaign cash on this election, it is more important than ever that Maryland voters support those candidates who share our environmental values and who will protect our air, water, special places and our families’ health,” said Landers. “On November 6^th the choice for Marylanders and the planet is clear.”