US Midterm Results Threaten AI Datacenter Boom in Key States

Fifty-six percent of American voters told pollsters that AI and datacenters were “important factors” in Tuesday’s midterm elections, and the outcome sent shares of major tech companies lower, NRC reported.

Democratic candidates won in Texas, Ohio and Georgia — states where many planned datacenters are located — on platforms that include pausing construction, NOS reported. Those candidates generally stand critical of the rapid build-out of the facilities, which consume large amounts of electricity and water.

Texas, Ohio and Georgia Send a Warning to Big Tech

The election results landed directly on the states hosting the largest share of planned AI infrastructure. In Texas, Ohio and Georgia, voters chose Democratic candidates who have called for halting or slowing datacenter construction, NOS reported. That gives the AI industry less political support at the state level for its expansion plans. Shares of tech companies fell after Tuesday’s results, NOS reported, a sign that investors read the Democratic wins as bad news for firms such as Anthropic and OpenAI.

New Projects Face a Permit Cliff Starting in 2028

The immediate impact on construction already underway is limited. “Projects scheduled before 2027 are not quickly undone,” said Rogier Quaedvlieg, a U.S. economist at ABN AMRO, in an interview with NOS. “Construction has often already begun, and the permits have been granted.”

The picture changes in 2028. “It takes time for the policies of the new officials and representatives, who take office in January, to take effect,” Quaedvlieg said. “From 2028, the application procedure for new projects begins. Tech companies will find it harder to get permission than now.”

According to Cleanview, which tracks the rollout of new datacenters, four in ten planned datacenters are located in states where the newly elected governor supported a construction halt during the campaign, NRC reported.

Referenda Back Construction Stops

Voters in several states also decided datacenter questions directly through referenda. Almost everywhere, NOS reported, the population voted for a construction stop or against new centers. Americans think more negatively about the possible environmental and economic impact of datacenters than at the start of the year, and a majority finds the arrival of a datacenter in their neighborhood unpleasant, NOS reported.

Anthropic’s $900 Billion Bet

According to its prospectus, prepared ahead of its stock market listing, Anthropic has entered into nearly $900 billion in obligations for computing power and infrastructure, most of which run until 2045, NRC reported. The company says it needs the capacity to keep training new high-quality AI models and to support growing use of Claude by businesses and individuals.

Three Options for Tech Companies

Option one: try to influence public opinion, for example by contributing to the infrastructure needed for the centers or by drafting environmental plans. Option two: lobby to move decision-making on datacenters to the federal level, so that states no longer decide but the national government does. If neither works, option three: relocate. Some are investigating whether they can build underwater, said Philip Marey, a U.S. analyst at Rabobank, in an interview with NOS. Space is also mentioned: “Datacenters in space look very attractive right now,” Elon Musk wrote on X shortly after the elections. Quaedvlieg expects companies to choose states that are more positive toward AI and datacenters. “In the extreme case, they could even leave the country entirely.” He does not expect a mass move to Europe. “Regions like the Middle East are much more interesting,” he said. “There is a lot of energy available and the rules are often more flexible.”

AI Infrastructure Tops $10 Trillion Through 2032

Belgian-American economist Stijn van Nieuwerburgh estimates AI infrastructure investment from 2025 through 2032 at more than $10 trillion, NRC reported. This year, those investments are estimated to make up 1.9 percent of U.S. gross domestic product, according to Goldman Sachs — the largest share of economic growth from a new industry since the railroad boom at the end of the nineteenth century. Both Democrats and Republicans agree that America must maintain its leading position in the technology race with China, Marey said. That may mean Democrats eventually become willing to negotiate and make concessions. “There is growing resistance to the expansion and the datacenter optimism,” Marey said. “There are also critical voices within the Republican Party.” At the same time, there is the realization that not participating in the AI race is not an option. “It is comparable to the industrial revolution. You have to participate. Only where, how, and at what price?”

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