Across the country, 45 local ballot measures tackled development directly, with 33 on track to restrict expansion through local bans and moratoriums. High-profile candidates who endorsed development pauses secured key statewide offices in Texas and Michigan, while other victors pushed to eliminate tax exemptions. Even politicians resisting outright bans felt compelled to mandate resource accountability, such as Florida Governor-elect Byron Donalds, who previously backed federal legislation requiring developers to cover their own energy and water needs.
Key points
Growing voter opposition is directly translating into localized moratoriums and outright…: Growing voter opposition is directly translating into localized moratoriums and outright development bans across multiple states.
Statewide elected officials are actively targeting developers by seeking to eliminate tax…: Statewide elected officials are actively targeting developers by seeking to eliminate tax incentives and slow project approvals.
Political leaders who oppose total bans are still forcing developers to take financial re…: Political leaders who oppose total bans are still forcing developers to take financial responsibility for their utility consumption.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
Data center developers are poised to face a more restrictive building environment after voters across the country voted in candidates who favor moratoriums and ballot measures that put more obstacles on their expansion, delivering a stinging blow to a central pillar of the AI industry.
Data centers lost the midterms
In ballot measures and exit polls, voters across the country rejected unrestrained development.
Data centers lost the midterms
In ballot measures and exit polls, voters across the country rejected unrestrained development.
Of voters polled by NBC News on Election Day, 76 percent said they opposed data centers in their communities. Dozens of local communities voted directly to restrict development through ballot measures. And upset winners like Texas Democratic Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa and Michigan’s Democratic Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed support moratoriums on development.
It’s hard to draw a direct line from data center backlash to the election of any of these candidates, and there were still some races where candidates who favored more limited restrictions on data centers prevailed. Republican Rep. Byron Donalds, who previously lauded development in Florida, was elected as…
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