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Among U.S. voters, a survey revealed that 61 % of respondents opposed the construction of data centers supporting artificial‑intelligence (AI) technology. The poll, conducted in early September, targeted 1,503 likely voters nationwide and found that all respondents’ 61 % answered “no” to the proposal.
The opposition rate was 75 % among Democratic‑leaning voters, 47 % among Republican‑leaning voters, and 60 % among independents and other‑party voters. When analyzed by generation, those under 30 years old opposed at about 80 %, while those aged 65 and older opposed at roughly 53 %.
The main reasons for opposition included the use of water and electricity, environmental impacts, and regional social effects (21 %), amounting to a total of 32 %— the highest share reported. Of the 56 % who opposed, some preferred “construction restriction” rather than outright ban; those favoring a complete prohibition made up about 38 %. The survey emphasized that AI and data centers could play a pivotal role in U.S. midterm elections, yet noted that voters expressed significant concern over the project.
A data center is a facility that operates servers and cooling equipment needed for training and inference of AI models; its construction requires water, electricity, and other resources, potentially creating local conflicts. A March 2026 survey found that 71 % of respondents opposed building such centers in their own districts, with strong opposition at 48 % and support at about 4 %. These findings suggest that data‑center construction could spark political and economic controversy.
The U.S. electorate’s preference for AI policy also appeared clear: the Republican Party and Democratic Party each received about 42 % and 40 % of the votes, a difference of only two percentage points—an insignificant gap that still hints at possible regional political alignment. The survey warned that debate over data‑center construction could expand into a “policy risk” in U.S. midterm elections.