Radical Anti-Fracking Activists Endorse Kamala Harris’ Campaign

Vice President Kamala Harris has racked up endorsements from several hardline climate groups that oppose fracking, even after her campaign disavowed her previous support of a fracking ban.

The political arms of 350.org, Friends of the Earth, the Center for Biological Diversity, Food and Water Watch, Climate Hawks Vote, Clean Water Action and the Green New Deal Network have all endorsed Harris, even after her campaign told The Hill last Friday that she no longer would ban fracking. The groups — all of which oppose fracking — had not endorsed President Joe Biden before he quit the 2024 presidential race, and they join a growing list of major environmental groups backing Harris as Election Day approaches.

Fracking is a technique for natural gas and oil extraction that has enabled a boom in American natural production over the past 15 years. When she last sought the presidency ahead of the 2020 election, Harris said that there’s “no question” fracking should be banned, though she has backed off of that position in addition to several other left-wing ideas in recent weeks as she eyes the Oval Office for a second time.

Friends of the Earth has opposed fracking for years, as has Food and Water Watch, which describes the practice as “the worst.” Meanwhile, the Center for Biological Diversity openly fights to ban fracking, while Clean Water Action and Climate Hawks Vote also oppose the practice.

One environmental group endorsing Harris, 350.org, was co-founded by prominent and outspoken environmentalist Bill McKibben and solicits donations on the basis of continuing to fight against fracking. The Green New Deal Network, which also backs Harris, is a coalition of activist organizations that lobbies for a quick transition away from fossil fuels and a transformation of American society “to be economically, racially, and socially equitable for all.”

Notably, one organization on the coalition’s steering committee is the Climate Justice Alliance (CJA), a radical pro-Palestine environmental group that is also receiving $50 million from an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) pass-through grant program. Joining CJA on the steering committee is the Sunrise Movement, whose executive director recently told Politico that “Kamala Harris will be immensely easier to pressure and change” than former President Donald Trump.

Representatives for the Harris campaign, Friends of the Earth, Center for Biological Diversity, Climate Hawks Vote, Clean Water Action, the Green New Deal Network and 350.org did not respond immediately to requests for comment.