This last Election Day, the people made their voices heard.

It wasn’t a midterm election, and there weren’t any national races on the ballot. But that didn’t stop voters from showing up to elect climate champions, challenge unlawful redistricting efforts, and cast their votes for a more affordable America.

Here are just a couple of results that have left us feeling hopeful:

• Voters in New Jersey and Virginia elected governors who laid out plans to lower electricity prices. New Jersey Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill and Virginia Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger prioritized energy affordability throughout their campaigns, promising to expand clean energy production, crack down on utilities and grid operators, and ensure that ratepayers don’t foot the bill for data center costs. It’s clear that their platforms resonated with residents facing double-digit rate increases, as both carried their races by more than 10 percentage points.

• Climate champions flipped two seats on Georgia’s Public Service Commission. Democrats Peter Hubbard and Alicia Johnson promised to disrupt the status quo at the PSC, which has allowed six rate increases in the last two years and long supported fossil-fuel-friendly utility plans. Their victory marks the first time in nearly 20 years that Democrats have been elected to a state-level office in Georgia—and they carried more than 60% of the vote, winning in suburbs that swung hard for Trump in the 2024 presidential election.

If one thing’s clear, it’s that people are fed up with rising costs, especially energy costs, which creates an opportunity for the climate movement because wind, solar, and batteries are already our cheapest and quickest options for adding more power to the grid.

Most voters in Georgia, New Jersey, and Virginia didn’t elect their new commissioners and governors because they’re passionate climate advocates. They elected them because they promised energy affordability and proposed decisive action to lower electricity costs for everyone. It just so happens that clean energy is the key to making that happen.

The best thing the U.S. climate movement can do right now is make the case that clean energy is the key to affordability, thereby appealing to what most Americans consider top priorities—the economy and their pocketbooks. If we can do that, clean energy build-out will continue, and the climate movement will emerge victorious.

Let’s hold on to the hope this election has given us, and use it to fuel our fight for the livable future we all deserve!