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Backlash Against Data Centres Could Shape US Midterm Elections

Local residents and lawmakers from both parties are turning against the facilities that house the computing power behind artificial intelligence

By AXY Business Desk ·

Reporting via BBC Business RSS
Reporting via BBC Business RSS (BBC Business RSS)

Key points

Democrats and Republicans are increasingly coming out against data centre development across the United States, and the backlash is beginning to shape how politicians plan for the 2026 midterm elections, according to a BBC Business report published on 14 October 2026. One longtime US senator, who a year ago was not paying much attention to data centres, now holds regular meetings with his staff to track their impact and is working on new legislation aimed at curbing their rapid expansion across the country, according to one of his advisers.

"This happens sometimes, something starts slow and then it goes fast," the senior policy adviser to the Democratic senator told the BBC. The adviser spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not permitted to speak to the press. The BBC reported that the senator's change in focus was driven almost entirely by a growing wave of public backlash that has left politicians across the country scrambling to keep up.

What a data centre is and why it is drawing attention

A data centre is a large building or campus that houses thousands of computer servers, which store, process and deliver the digital services people use every day, from websites and video streaming to online banking and cloud software. According to the BBC, these facilities are packed with rows and rows of computer chips, sometimes seven feet high. Because the chips generate heat, data centres also rely on large cooling systems, and because they run around the clock, they require a steady and substantial supply of electricity.

For years, data centres were largely invisible to the public and received little political attention. That has changed as the rapid growth of artificial intelligence, or AI, which refers to software systems that can generate text, images and other outputs, has pushed companies to build far more computing capacity. The BBC described data centres as the physical embodiment of this growth and of the varied fears people associate with AI. In other words, a debate that began as a question about technology investment has become a debate about land, power bills, noise and the future direction of the economy.

Local fights over land, power and daily life

The human side of the backlash is visible in communities where large projects are being planned or built. The BBC quoted Indiana resident Angelita Soriano, who said: "I don't want to be the guinea pig for this." A new Amazon data centre is being built directly across the street from her home. When complete, the 26-building structure will take up more than a square mile of her neighbourhood and maintain 782 diesel-powered generators, according to the BBC.

Diesel generators are typically used as backup power, switched on when the main electricity supply fails. Their scale at a facility of this size is one reason residents raise questions about the impact on their surroundings. Concerns across many data centre projects commonly include noise, the use of land near homes, pressure on local electricity grids and water use for cooling, although the specifics vary by site and the BBC's reporting on Indiana focused on the scale of the new building and its proximity to homes.

The BBC's Shaimaa Khalil has also been reporting from Arizona, where she has been hearing from residents about the expansion of data centres in their area. Those local voices help explain why opposition is spreading across different types of communities rather than remaining confined to one region or political camp.

The scale of projects in Ohio and across the US

Some projects are far larger than the Indiana development. The BBC reported that in Ohio, a joint effort between OpenAI, Nvidia, SB Energy and the US Department of Energy is set to build a data centre complex that will stretch for roughly six square miles, which the BBC said is about the same size as most townships in the US. OpenAI develops AI models, Nvidia makes the specialised chips widely used to train and run them, and SB Energy is an energy company, so the Ohio plan brings together technology, chips, power and government.

The number of facilities is also rising. The BBC, citing a report by the Pew Research Center, said there are about 3,000 data centres currently operating in the US, with that number potentially doubling in the next few years. A doubling of the network would multiply the number of sites where residents may face questions about land use, power supply and daily disruption, which helps explain why the issue is moving from specialist debates into mainstream politics.

Why the fight is reaching federal politics

The central tension is that data centres are mostly approved through very local rules and permits. Decisions about zoning, building approvals and local infrastructure are typically made by county, city or state bodies. The BBC noted that federal lawmakers, including US senators, therefore have little direct say over whether a particular project goes ahead. That gap is one reason many residents turn to elected officials in Washington, while national politicians look for federal tools that could affect the wider expansion.

This helps explain why the senator described in the BBC report is focusing on legislation. Lawmakers who cannot block a single project from Washington may still shape national rules, funding decisions or oversight of the broader sector. The BBC report does not detail the content of the proposed bill, so readers should treat any description of its specific provisions with caution until further details are published.

The midterm elections are a key reason the issue is gaining urgency. In the US, midterm elections take place in the middle of a presidential term and decide every seat in the House of Representatives and about a third of the Senate. Candidates in both parties are looking for issues that connect with voters in their own districts, and a local project that affects homes, power bills or neighbourhood quality can quickly become a campaign topic.

What could happen next

Analysts expect the debate to move in several directions at once. At the local level, residents may continue to contest zoning approvals and permits, and communities may seek conditions on noise, backup power and land use. At the state level, legislatures and utility regulators may face pressure over how the growing electricity demand from data centres is planned and paid for. At the federal level, lawmakers could pursue bills on oversight, energy supply or the broader expansion of the sector.

For voters, the key questions are likely to be who pays for new power infrastructure, how local communities are consulted, and whether the economic benefits such as jobs and tax revenue outweigh the disruption. Those questions are not settled, and the outcome will depend on how candidates, companies and local governments respond. The BBC's reporting suggests that the political momentum is building quickly, and that the usual pattern of slow change may be giving way to a faster political reaction.

Readers should watch for several signals: new federal or state bills targeting data centre expansion, local votes on specific projects, campaign messaging from candidates in both parties, and any further published research on the number and size of facilities. Those developments will show whether the backlash remains a local concern or becomes a central issue in the November elections.

Topics: data centres, artificial intelligence, US midterm elections, US Congress, Pew Research Center, Amazon, OpenAI, Indiana

Sources: BBC Business RSS

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