After the midterms, a bigger clash over data centers could be coming

The November 3 midterm results gave Democrats full control of Congress, setting the stage for what could be one of the most divided U.S. governments this decade, with Republicans in the White House. 

Tuesday’s results suggest that anger over data centers, the large facilities that house the computers powering AI, is becoming a political force. With Democrats now in control of Congress, that could lead to new limits on where data centers can be built and how much say local communities have.

Data centers became a ballot-box issue in various states. An NBC exit poll showed how concerned voters are about AI: More than half of respondents believe that AI will do more harm than good, while almost 80% are against the building of data centers in their neighborhoods. Almost 60%, meanwhile, said data centers were a crucial or major factor in their vote. Nadine Smith, president and CEO of the racial justice organization Color of Change, called Tuesday’s election a referendum on “who this economy is built for.” 

“National security matters,” Smith said, referring to a common argument from data center supporters that the infrastructure is essential for the U.S. to stay ahead in war and in its rivalry with China. “And so do the families in South Memphis breathing exhaust from the gas turbines powering an AI supercomputer.” (She was referring to xAI’s data center in Memphis, Tennessee, which uses gas turbines for power.)

Voters in several states pushed back against the AI buildout, even as pro-AI super PACs spent millions hoping to sway them this midterm. The anti-data center backlash was especially felt in states like Ohio, where OpenAI has eyed a $500 billion data center, backed by more than $100 billion in financing from Nvidia. In fact, the Ohio county where Meta had planned a 700,000-square-foot facility just passed a ban on data centers, and local communities across the state overwhelmingly voted against data center buildout measures.