Soaring grocery prices helped Trump to victory. The climate crisis is only going to make this worse | James Meadway

From olive oil to butter, extreme weather is pushing up the cost of living and having a dramatic political impact. Economists need a solution

In the US, where Donald Trump swept the board last week, it was the experience of sharply increasing essentials prices, from food to energy, that glued together the Republicans’ new electoral coalition. About 75% of those voting Republican reported that they had faced “hardship” or “severe hardship” as a result of price rises; only 25% of Democrats said the same. When Trump asked if Americans felt better now than they did four years ago, the answer for most was a clear no.

Price surges are having political impacts. In elections this year in three of the world’s largest economies, incumbent parties were hammered by voters angry about their helplessness in the face of the steeply rising cost of essentials.

James Meadway is director of the Progressive Economy Forum

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