Voters Overwhelmingly Reject Data Centers in Their Communities on Election Day
Voters rejected or limited projects in 44 of 45 measures, reflecting widespread concerns about power use, water demand and local oversight.
- On Tuesday, voters across nine states approved measures to restrict or ban new data centers, with at least 29 jurisdictions passing these limits according to The Washington Post.
- Democrats leveraged voter frustration with Big Tech, running anti-data center campaigns in more than 130 federal and gubernatorial races citing growing concerns over electricity and water consumption.
- Ohio served as a focal point with 41 measures on ballots across 10 states, while in Texas, Democrat Gina Hinojosa defeated Republican Gov. Greg Abbott after campaigning for a moratorium.
- Goldman Sachs economists project these Democratic victories will likely trigger short-term moratoria, potentially affecting about 45% of planned US data center capacity expansion.
- Tech companies are attempting to rebrand data centers as 'compute campuses' with mixed results, Semafor's Ashley Gold reported, though potential moratoriums lasting over six months could delay projects not yet in construction.
97 Articles
97 Articles
Voters Reject Data Centers in 47 of 50 Ballot Measures
Voters rejected data centers in 47 of at least 50 ballot measures on 2026 election night, a local revolt Democrats are already aiming to convert into federal AI crackdowns. Across the country, election night produced a near-clean sweep against the facilities that power advanced artificial intelligence. In 47 contests that either cleared the way for […]
Revolting Against Data Centers, Voters in Nearly 40 Towns Reject Projects
Silicon Valley wants communities across the country to make room for its data centers. On Tuesday, those communities had their say. Voters considered nearly 40 data center-related ballot measures across 10 states, turning the midterms into a sprawling referendum shifting the technology industry’s demand for power into a test of political power. Of the ballot […]
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