Editor’s note: O’Rourke ended her candidacy on March 23.
On an unseasonably hot October day, a small crowd gathered at Genesis Farm, a 226-acre nonprofit in Blairstown, New Jersey, to help pull up beets before winter set in. It was the farm’s annual harvest festival and for Megan O’Rourke, a former federal climate scientist running for Congress, a natural campaign stop.
O’Rourke, after all, knows ...
O'Rourke's campaign can be seen as a response to what she perceives as an assault on science by the Trump administration, which led to a significant shift in how scientists are engaging in politics. The administration's actions have caused a wave of protests, letters of dissent, and resistance within scientific communities. If elected, O'Rourke would be among the first women in Congress with a scientific PhD, adding another perspective to the political landscape.
However, it is important to cons...