National Wildlife Federation
Samantha Lockhart
January 26, 2016

NWF “Moosing” Presidential Hopefuls in New Hampshire

Presidential candidates pictured alphabetically by last name. Photo by NWF

New Hampshire’s moose are in big trouble, as are many other species of wildlife suffering from extreme impacts of climate change. As the New Hampshire presidential primary rhetoric ramps up, the National Wildlife Federation wants to know: will our leaders and elected officials commit to helping moose and taking action to put the brakes on climate change? So, we’re asking them.

This month, we’ve deployed local advocates to press our leaders and elected officials in person for their plans to curb climate change and protect our beloved wildlife, before species like New Hampshire’s moose disappear! At each stop, we offer candidates a toy moose to remind them of the plight of the moose and send the message that we want leaders who will take action on climate change.

So far, we’ve attended 22 presidential candidate events across the state of New Hampshire and have “moosed” the candidates pictured above in alphabetical order: Governor Jeb Bush, Governor Chris Christie, Secretary Hillary Clinton, Senator Ted Cruz, Carly Fiorina, Governor John Kasich, Senator Rand Paul, Senator Marco Rubio, Senator Bernie Sanders, and Donald Trump. We are still here hoping to reach even more of these presidential hopefuls with our message!

Help NWF “moose” the candidates at events in New Hampshire by joining us at a town hall this month and speak for moose because they can’t speak for themselves.

The New Hampshire moose population has declined in the last decade from 7,500 to 4,000 – that’s nearly 50%! Scientists say shorter winters and summer heat stress brought on by rising temperatures are hurting New Hampshire’s moose. The lack of snow in northern New Hampshire during April and November has caused a dramatic increase in the number of winter ticks. These parasites are severely impacting remaining moose populations. This decline also means that fewer hunting licenses will be issued and fewer tourists will get to witness these iconic animals.

In the face of this dramatic decline, we need to cut carbon pollution through the Clean Power Plan, the first-ever federal regulations limiting industrial carbon pollution from new and existing power plants, and switch to clean energy as rapidly as possible.

The National Wildlife Federation does not endorse or oppose any candidate in connection with the presidential election or any other political campaign or election.