WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Climate Alliance — a bipartisan coalition of 24 governors representing approximately 60 percent of the U.S. economy and 55 percent of the U.S. population — today announced that California Governor Gavin Newsom and Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers have been appointed co–chairs of the Alliance. Together with New York Governor and outgoing Alliance co-chair Kathy Hochul, Delaware Governor Matt Meyer, and Washington Governor Bob Ferguson, they will serve on the Alliance’s executive committee charged with overseeing the strategic direction of the coalition.
“Americans want cleaner air and water, lower costs, and healthier communities — and that’s exactly what Alliance governors are delivering,” said Alliance co-chair California Governor Newsom. “As the federal government retreats from the climate fight, states are charging ahead. We were built to lead in moments like this, and as co-chair of this coalition, I look forward to partnering with my fellow governors to keep America on track.”
“Every day the Alliance’s states and territories are showing that we don’t have to choose between protecting our air, water, and communities and growing our economy — we can, and will, do both,” said Alliance co-chair Wisconsin Governor Evers, the first Midwest governor to serve in this role. “As co-chair of the Alliance, I will fight like hell to build the cleaner, healthier future our kids and grandkids deserve here in Wisconsin and across America.”
This marks the first time the Alliance has been co-chaired by a Midwest governor. The appointments of Governors Ferguson and Meyer to the executive committee come after they joined the Alliance earlier this year.
“Delaware is the lowest-lying state in the nation, so we don’t have the luxury of sitting on the sidelines of the climate crisis,” said Delaware Governor Meyer. “That’s why I joined the U.S. Climate Alliance earlier this year and it’s why I’m proud to serve on its leadership team. Together, we will build a safer and more resilient America.”
“There’s a reason Washington is known as the Evergreen State, and we intend to keep it that way for generations to come,” said Washington Governor Ferguson. “That means continuing to pursue the most innovative and impactful climate solutions, while driving collaboration and collective action across the Alliance.”
Governor Hochul, who served as Alliance co-chair for the last year alongside New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, will continue serving on the executive committee for the coming year.
“It has been a privilege to lead the Alliance over the past year alongside Governor Lujan Grisham, and I’m looking forward to continuing working with my fellow governors to protect our environment and advance an affordable, sustainable future for New Yorkers,” said New York Governor Hochul. “It’s why I’m investing more than $1 billion this year into the climate agenda — the largest climate investment in New York’s history — to create thousands of good-paying jobs, improve long-term affordability for families and significantly reduce harmful pollution.”
The Alliance’s leaders were elected by the coalition’s members and will serve in these roles until the Alliance’s semiannual meeting in spring 2026.
“We are deeply grateful for the unwavering leadership of Governors Hochul and Lujan Grisham, who have strengthened the Alliance and protected our progress despite the headwinds and challenges we’ve faced. It’s also clear our new co-chairs — Governors Newsom and Evers — are ready to hit the ground running and bring the deep experience and resolve we need in this moment,” said U.S. Climate Alliance Executive Director Casey Katims. “Additionally, we’re thrilled to welcome fresh perspectives from two of the Alliance’s newest members — Governors Ferguson and Meyer — to our leadership team.”
Today’s announcement comes as the Alliance concludes its weeklong semiannual spring meeting in Washington, D.C., which brought together top officials from the coalition’s states and territories to share solutions and chart a path forward for collective state-led action. The convening also featured a series of engagements and dialogues with federal policymakers and partner organizations on a range of topics, including clean energy deployment, grid modernization, energy affordability, and clean transportation.
Launched in 2017 by the governors of Washington, New York, and California to help fill the void left by the U.S. federal government’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, the Alliance has grown to include 24 governors from across the U.S. representing approximately 60 percent of the U.S. economy and 55 percent of the U.S. population. Governors in the Alliance have pledged to collectively reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 26-28 percent by 2025, 50-52 percent by 2030, and 61-66 percent by 2035, all below 2005 levels, and collectively achieve overall net-zero greenhouse gas emissions as soon as practicable, and no later than 2050.
The Alliance’s states and territories continue to advance innovative and impactful climate solutions to grow the economy, create jobs, and protect public health, and have a long record of action and results. In fact, the latest data shows that as of 2023, the Alliance has reduced its collective net greenhouse gas emissions by 24 percent below 2005 levels, while increasing collective GDP by 34 percent, and is on track to meet its near-term climate goal of reducing collective greenhouse gas emissions 26 percent below 2005 levels by 2025.
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