Six in 10 Americans now support nuclear energy, according to a new Gallup poll.
When asked about “the use of nuclear energy as one of the ways to provide electricity for the U.S,” 61 percent in the Gallup poll said they “strongly favor” or “somewhat favor” it. Thirty-five percent said they “somewhat oppose” or “strongly oppose” the use of nuclear energy as one of the ways to provide electricity in their country, with 4 percent saying they had “no opinion.”
The percent of Americans backing the use of nuclear energy to provide electricity for their country is up 6 points from 2023 when it was 55 percent and 10 points from 2022, when it was 55 percent, a notable rise in a span of three years.
Last July, former President Biden signed a bipartisan bill with an aim to boost the U.S.’s nuclear power. The nuclear package was expected to shorten the timeline for new reactors’ licensing and made the Nuclear Regulatory Commission create a report considering ways to simplify and shrink the environmental review process for such reactors.
In a social media post in which he announced his signing of the legislation, Biden said it would help provide “clean nuclear power and good union jobs.”
When respondents were asked in the Gallup poll about energy’s “availability and affordability,” 71 percent of respondents said they “worry about” it either “a great deal” or “a fair amount.” Twenty percent said they worry about energy availability and affordability “only a little” and 8 percent they worry about it “not at all.”
The Gallup poll took place from March 6 to 15, featuring 1,001 people and has a plus or minus 4 percentage points as its margin of sampling error.
