Data centers have become one of the few issues that cuts across party lines in the 2026 midterms. In a long policy report published on October 27, 2026, The Verge's Lauren Feiner describes close races from Texas to Pennsylvania where candidates are branding opponents "data center" nicknames, walking back earlier support for the buildout, and in some cases promising a pause. For anyone building or buying AI compute, it is a preview of the rules and delays that could follow the vote.
This post summarizes what The Verge reported, adds the polling and context we have covered already, and spells out what it could change for AI infrastructure. All facts about specific candidates come from The Verge's reporting and the sources it links, and we flag where a claim is a candidate's own.
TL;DR: data centers in the 2026 races
| Question | Short answer |
|---|---|
| Is this one party's issue? | No. Both Democrats and Republicans are criticizing data centers, though Democrats are more likely to back a pause, per The Verge |
| Who wants a moratorium? | Several candidates, from Gina Hinojosa (Texas) to Mike Rogers and Abdul El-Sayed (Michigan Senate), plus Florida's David Jolly |
| Most common proposals | Ending tax breaks, making data centers pay for their own power, banning NDAs, water standards |
| What do polls say? | 64% of likely Pennsylvania voters (Quinnipiac) expect more harm than good; 45% of Florida likely voters oppose data centers (NBC6/Telemundo) |
| Who is spending? | Leading the Future ($45M in a year), Public First Action (says $80M raised), Tomorrow Together ($4M in ads) |
| Why AI readers should care | Power, siting and permitting rules decide where and how fast new AI capacity can come online |
Why did data centers become a campaign issue?
The Verge's opening argument is simple: the rapid buildout of "massive server storage facilities" and the construction and expense that come with it "has sparked local opposition in communities across the country." That matches the trail of stories we have been tracking this month: a San Francisco moratorium, a push in New York described in our Hochul and AOC explainer, and a Senate investigation into whether hyperscalers misled the public about costs.
National polling points the same way. Our write-up of the ABC/Washington Post/Ipsos poll found 57 percent of Americans say AI is bad for society and 66 percent oppose new data centers. Candidates are reading those numbers.
A small cluster of houses with a blank sign, showing local data center opposition in a community
Texas: both parties want data centers to pay their own way
Texas has the second-highest number of planned data center projects in the country after Virginia, according to The Verge, and the issue shows up across multiple races.
- Senate: Democrat James Talarico unveiled a "Hold Data Centers Accountable Plan" in July that would end state sales tax incentives, give communities more say, require closed-loop water systems and create federal grid and environmental standards. He has also proposed an "AI Dividend" funded by a tax on "AI-attributable profits." Republican Ken Paxton's "Texas First Data Center Plan" (August) would repeal sales tax exemptions, require data centers to pay for the power they use and add, and keep AI data centers out of rural parts of the state. Both want data centers to bear their own energy infrastructure costs.
- Governor: Democrat Gina Hinojosa has called for a statewide moratorium and accuses Gov. Greg Abbott of "flip-flopping." Abbott's office celebrated a $40 billion Google investment last year, then announced an audit in August 2026 that could slow new grid connections. Cook Political Report moved the race from likely Republican to leans Republican this month, and rates the Senate race a toss-up.
Talarico's data center record is also the subject of an unrelated AI-misinformation story we covered: see what is confirmed about the Google AI Overview and Talarico donation links.
Pennsylvania: Shapiro and Garrity both changed tone
In the state with the biggest purple-state stakes, both gubernatorial candidates have hardened their positions. Gov. Josh Shapiro announced a $20 billion Amazon investment last year and credited a fast-track permitting program. This year, The Verge reports, he signed an executive order in August banning nondisclosure agreements for data center developers and took AI data center proposals off the fast track. He says his views evolved based on community feedback.
Republican Stacy Garrity once said rural areas would be "perfect places to put data centers." She now says developers must engage communities rather than "jam it down their throats" and supports a pause of no more than three years, per Spotlight PA as cited by The Verge.
An early October Quinnipiac University poll of likely Pennsylvania voters found 64 percent believe AI data centers in the state will do more harm than good, including 80 percent of Democrats. The same poll had Shapiro leading 59 to 34. Our coverage of Amazon dropping NDAs and of Google ending NDAs with local officials shows the industry is already adjusting on secrecy.
Ohio and Michigan: data centers as the swing issue
Ohio Senate. Democrat Sherrod Brown is calling Republican incumbent Jon Husted "the face of data centers." A leaked National Republican Senatorial Committee memo, cited by The Verge, called data centers "the anchor hanging around Husted's neck" and warned: "If he loses and data centers get the blame, politicians across the country will take notice." Husted introduced the Ratepayer Protection Act, requiring large power users like data centers to cover their own energy costs and grid upgrades. It passed the House and narrowly failed in the Senate. Cook rates the race a toss-up.
Michigan Senate. Both candidates for the open seat support a moratorium. Republican Mike Rogers backs a one-year pause but opposes a federal ban; his position came days after The Lever reported on investments of his that could gain from the buildout. Democrat Abdul El-Sayed says there should be "no more data centers until we can do it safely and with federal protections." Cook calls the race a dead heat.
In a Michigan House toss-up, Democrat William Lawrence called for a year-long federal moratorium, while Republican incumbent Tom Barrett introduced bills for local decision-making and barring federal lawmakers from signing data center NDAs.
Florida, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, Wisconsin and Iowa
A water droplet above a cooling basin, representing water use concerns in data center politics
| State and race | Position summary (per The Verge) |
|---|---|
| Florida governor | Democrat David Jolly pledges a one-year ban on hyperscale data centers on day one. Republican Byron Donalds, called "Data Center Donalds" by opponents, backs ratepayer-protection rules but not a ban. NBC6/Telemundo: 45% oppose data centers in Florida, 59% in their own community; Donalds leads 48 to 41 |
| Georgia governor | Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms supports a pause to study environmental and cost effects. Republican Rick Jackson wants local communities to decide. They dispute each other's data center records |
| Arizona governor and AG | Democrats are split: AG Kris Mayes backs a statewide pause, Gov. Katie Hobbs opposes one. Republican Warren Petersen defends data centers outright |
| Nevada governor | Democrats branded Gov. Joe Lombardo "data center Joe." He issued an executive order tying tax incentives to power and water standards. Democrat Aaron Ford would pause tax breaks entirely |
| Wisconsin governor | Neither David Crowley nor Tom Tiffany backs a moratorium. Crowley now says he would sign a bill repealing tax subsidies. Cook: dead heat |
| Iowa governor | Democrat Rob Sand wants tax breaks ended, data centers paying their own costs and NDAs barred. Republican Zach Lahn has called for a moratorium |
The pattern is that proposals cluster around four ideas: end or condition tax breaks, make data centers cover power and grid costs (the same demand President Trump made in the post we fact-checked in Trump says data centers are mandated to make their own power), set water standards, and stop NDAs from hiding deals.
Who is spending money on AI politics?
The Verge notes that tech money is flowing into many of these races. Leading the Future, a super PAC backed by Marc Andreessen and OpenAI's Greg Brockman, has spent $45 million in a year. Public First Action, an Anthropic-backed group that says it supports AI safeguards, says it has raised $80 million. Both have funded Democratic and Republican-aligned groups. A newer group, Tomorrow Together, launched $4 million in ads for battleground House races mixing data center and AI safety messages.
For the full picture of the AI-regulation fight, see our piece on how Democrats are betting on cracking down on AI in the midterms. Separately, a Techmeme-listed CNBC analysis put AI political groups' spending on federal candidates this cycle at $78.5 million; we have not independently verified that figure and cite it only as reported.
What this could change for AI infrastructure
Nobody knows which candidates will win, and the Cook ratings above show most of these races are close. The practical signals for builders are more durable than any single result.
- Power self-supply is becoming the default ask. Candidates in both parties and the White House are converging on the idea that data centers pay for their own generation and grid upgrades. That raises project costs and favors developers who can bring their own power. Our transformer lead-times explainer shows why that is hard.
- Secrecy is out. NDA bans are a bipartisan proposal, and Amazon and Google have already moved. Expect more public hearings before approval.
- Pauses are plausible in some states. A moratorium is on the table in Florida, Michigan, Georgia and Arizona debates. Even if it does not pass, the delay risk gets priced into site selection.
- The blame story matters. The NRSC memo's warning implies that an incumbent loss tied to data centers would make politicians of both parties cautious about backing new projects.
Overseas, the same dynamic has played out when Microsoft pulled out of a UK site over grid power.
What to watch before and after Election Day
- Whether candidates who ran against data centers actually win, and whether their opponents' reversals (Abbott, Shapiro, Garrity, Donalds) are judged sincere.
- State legislative sessions in 2027: ratepayer protection, tax-break repeal and NDA bans are the likeliest bills.
- Whether federal action returns after the Senate's narrow failure on the Ratepayer Protection Act.
- Disclosure by AI labs about where their compute is going, given the pressure on siting.
What this means if you build with AI
If you consume AI through APIs, you will not see a data center vote in your invoice. But capacity shortages, power constraints and delayed regions show up as rate limits, queueing and price floors. Hedging by using multiple providers and regions, caching aggressively, and choosing smaller models where they are enough are all sensible. Our token price history explains how supply has so far kept prices falling, and why that is not guaranteed.
FAQ: quick answers
Short answers to the main questions are in the FAQ above. In brief: the backlash is bipartisan, the polling supports it in the states we have data for, and the realistic near-term outcomes are cost-sharing rules, ended tax breaks and open-process requirements rather than outright bans.
Related reading
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Abbott staff and big tech before the ERCOT fast track: claimed vs verified
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Trump on data centers making their own power: claimed vs verified
Details reflect The Verge's reporting and polls as of October 27, 2026. Candidate positions and race ratings can change before Election Day.