Data Center Opponents Win 40 of 41 Ballot Measures in the Midterms; Voters Halt an Amazon Project in Ohio
On midterm election day, November 3, voters in 10 states decided 41 local ballot measures related to data centers. According to Ballotpedia records and several analyses of the results, the side opposing or restricting data center development won 40 of them: 27 restrictive measures were approved, including five complete bans, twelve partial bans and three six-month moratoriums, while 13 proposals favorable to developers were rejected. The only exception was in Harwood, North Dakota, where a review requirement was voted down. Counts vary slightly by methodology; the 41-measure figure is the Ballotpedia baseline.
Ohio was the centre of the resistance, with 21 measures on the ballot. In Sunbury, 78 percent of voters backed a ban on data centers drawing more than 25 megawatts, halting an Amazon-backed project of about $2 billion. In Hubbard, 2,622 residents voted to prohibit new data centers in the city, 76.58 percent of ballots cast. In Alhambra, California, Measure DB, which bans data centers citywide, drew preliminary support above 82 percent.
Opponents focused on what life next to a facility is like: round-the-clock noise, electricity demand pushing up bills, heavy water use and few jobs, while the profits flow to distant shareholders. The advocacy group Data Center Resistance estimated that technology firms and their allies outspent local citizen campaigns by roughly 100 to 1 nationwide, and still lost nearly everywhere. In the pooled voter survey by the Associated Press and the major networks, covering more than 75,000 voters, 76 percent said they would oppose a new data center in their community, 86 percent were concerned about utility costs, and 56 percent said super intelligence (SI) and data centers were a crucial or major factor in their vote for Congress.
OpenAI's chief financial officer, Sarah Friar, said on November 6 that the company would maintain its data center investment, while committing to address electricity, water, transparency and community engagement. Analysts note the results do not amount to a national ban, since most restrictions apply to single towns or sites, but the build-out now has to win at the ballot box first.
(Source: Ballotpedia)
Source: Ballotpedia
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：数据中心机房资料图（BalticServers.com 摄，CC BY-SA 3.0，经 Wikimedia Commons）。 / Photo: A data centre server room, file photo by BalticServers.com. CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
