Most initiatives to restrict data centers supported in the US — Engadget

In local elections in the United States, voters supported most of the restrictions on data centers put to a vote. As of Wednesday morning, 45 such initiatives had been put forward in 10 states: 33 had already been approved, and another six were also expected to receive support, Engadget reports, citing the Data Centers on the Ballot tracker.

What restrictions were supported

The measures approved by voters varied by community. They included outright bans on data centers, temporary moratoriums, limits on energy consumption, and requirements to obtain public approval before projects could proceed further.

Only the city of Harwood in North Dakota rejected an amendment that would have required local authorities to hold public hearings before approving major industrial projects, including 100-megawatt data centers. Five more communities had not published voting data at that time.

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Strongest support for restrictions in Ohio

The strongest support for data center restrictions was seen in Ohio, which has 257 such facilities. In the state, data center issues were placed on 20 ballots, and in every case restrictions had either already won or were projected to win.

In the cities of Urbana and Hubbard, voters considered a complete ban on data centers. It was supported by 76% and 77% of residents, respectively. During the US Senate election, Democrat Sherrod Brown made opposition to data centers one of the central points of his campaign and called his opponent, Senator John Husted, the face of data centers. The Associated Press declared Brown the winner of the race. According to an NBC exit poll, 56% of voters said that artificial intelligence and data centers were a decisive or significant factor in their vote for Congress.