# Data center backlash is uniting America

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/data-center-backlash-is-uniting-america/
- Published: 2026-10-27T10:00:00+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-27T10:12:31+00:00
- Original publisher: The Verge
- Original article: https://www.theverge.com/policy/1019152/data-centers-midterm-elections
- Topics: Elections, Government, Politics

## Key points

- Data centres have become a campaign issue across the US.
- Candidates from both parties are responding to local concerns.
- Texas plans and campaign positions show the debate’s range.

## Summary

Data centres have become a prominent issue in US campaigns, as communities push back against rapid construction and its demands on power, water and public infrastructure. Candidates across party lines are responding to voters’ concerns, while technology-backed political groups are spending heavily on races where AI policy and data centre development are in focus.

Texas illustrates the debate: it has the country’s second-largest number of planned data centre projects, after Virginia. Senate candidates James Talarico and Ken Paxton both propose ending some tax breaks and making data centres pay for energy infrastructure, though their plans differ on issues such as environmental safeguards, Chinese technology and rural development. In the governor’s race, incumbent Greg Abbott announced an audit that could slow new facilities’ grid connections after his office had promoted a $40 billion Google investment involving three campuses.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.