Voters Push Back on Data Center Expansion

At least 33 communities voted to restrict data center development in the 2026 midterms, putting local limits on an industry whose projects have often drawn opposition from residents. About 76% of voters said they would oppose new data centers in their communities, and 56% said AI and data centers were a “crucial or major factor” in their vote for Congress, NBC News exit polls found.

Local Votes, Local Resistance

Measures to restrict data center development appeared on ballots Nov. 3 in roughly 40 cities and towns. Voters in at least 33 chose moratoriums, new regulations or outright bans, according to Data Centers on the Ballot, a website tracking the legislation. Only one town in North Dakota voted against restrictions.

In Ohio, at least 18 communities considered restrictions, and all the measures passed, local vote tallies showed. Proposals included full bans, temporary pauses and new zoning requirements. In Edgewater, Florida, voters approved adding a total ban on data centers to the city charter.

At least 10 municipalities voted to ban large data centers or facilities exceeding 25 megawatts. The article described that threshold as effectively prohibiting hyperscale facilities that have supported recent AI development. Some communities temporarily paused permit applications; others blocked rezoning measures that would have allowed additional projects.

Local officials also faced consequences at the ballot box. In Piqua, Ohio, the mayor and two council members were recalled in part over their handling of a proposed data center backed by Meta, local outlets reported. The mayor of Yukon, Oklahoma, was also removed from office before the end of the term after opposition to a hyperscale data center in the community.

Harwood, North Dakota, a town of fewer than 1,000 people, was the only community to vote against a proposed restriction. Supported by 24% of voters, the initiative would have imposed new requirements on the city for certain development or building projects, including data centers.

The Election Fight Over Who Gets to Build

Data center opposition reached competitive statewide and national races. Democratic candidates who took tough stances toward the facilities won gubernatorial and congressional races, while candidates who had supported large facilities, even if they later reversed their positions, were largely defeated. Officials who supported guardrails won races in Texas, Michigan, Arizona, South Carolina and Ohio.

In South Carolina, Democratic challenger Dr. Annie Andrews called for a ban, while Republican Sen. Darline Graham opposed one on national security grounds. Andrews called her opponent “Data Center Darline” and defeated Graham. Graham received at least $1.5 million in advertising from a super PAC aligned with data centers, The New York Times reported. Her campaign also faced criticism over her experience and fluency on foreign policy.

In Ohio, Democrat Sherrod Brown defeated Republican incumbent Sen. Jon Husted after calling him “the face of data centers” in attack ads. Months before the election, the National Republican Senatorial Committee issued a memo to AI companies describing data centers as “the anchor hanging around Husted's neck.”

Texas offered another reversal. Democratic gubernatorial nominee state Rep. Gina Hinojosa criticized Gov. Greg Abbott for earlier comments that Texas would become the “epicenter of AI development.” Abbott later reversed course and enacted a statewide moratorium. Hinojosa defeated the three-term incumbent in an upset.

Restrictions, and the Limits of the Ballot

The results didn't mean development would stop. Some analysts forecast continued spending, higher costs and a shift in construction toward states and localities that make deals with developers or are generally more welcoming to data centers. The ballot measures could restrict projects in particular communities while leaving developers able to seek other locations.

Supporters, including President Donald Trump, said data centers bring jobs and tax revenue to communities that embrace them. They argued that halting construction would give China an advantage in the AI development race. Trump continued to support construction and criticized opponents, saying they wanted to end up “backwards and poor.”

Opposition has grown amid concerns about property values, energy, the environment, and AI's potential effects on jobs and the economy. David Karol, an associate professor at the University of Maryland who studies American political development, said, “We've known for a while that people are very unhappy about data centers.” The midterms showed the intensity of “bipartisan hostility,” he said, adding, “It's pretty striking.”

Thomas Kahn, director of the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies at American University, said local ballot measures and national races reflected growing resentment toward an industry many people believe expanded too quickly and avoided input from local communities. He expected data centers to remain a major issue in future elections, with more candidates favoring restrictions. “Politicians who didn't address the data center issue adequately paid a heavy price,” he said.

On Election Night, Greg Casar, the Texas Democratic congressman, called opposition to data centers “one of the top issues of the 2026 election.” He said, “we will look back on it as just the early tremor of a much bigger AI earthquake upending American politics.” Casar urged Democrats in Congress to make AI and data centers a “top priority to protect Americans' jobs, lives and freedoms from AI billionaires.”