Misleading2026-10
What is circulating
“Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Fox News on 1 October 2026 that "electricity prices are almost 50% higher in states run by Democrats," and argued that renewable energy mandates are the reason, saying "that's not coincidence."”
Claimed by Chris Wright, Energy Secretary · news report
The facts
FactCheck.org called the claims misleading: Wright's raw averages roughly match the data, but they do not show that renewable portfolio standards cause the gap. An MIT study of 1998 to 2023 found no detectable effect of such standards on residential prices after controls, and a Berkeley Lab analysis found they added about 1 cent per kilowatt hour in a few Northeastern states. In California, wildfire costs accounted for 40 percent of a 64 percent rate increase since 2019.