Escalation: Both Parties Target Data Centers in Ads

Since January, campaigns and allied groups have spent more than $45 million on ads that mention data centers in gubernatorial, House and Senate races. From January through August, spending was nearly even — over $22 million backing Republicans and more than $21 million backing Democrats — yet Democrats aired almost twice as many spots, 127 to 67, across more states and contests.

Mentions have surged as the midterms near: 62 ads in June, more than 110 in July and roughly 164 in August. Ads from both parties tie data centers to higher electricity bills and generous tax breaks and call for tighter limits. Some Republican messages add a condition that centers pay for their own energy while casting them as needed for the AI race and local jobs.

A Wisconsin ad for Democrat David Crowley cost $634,795 and promised to stop AI data centers from driving up utility bills, while a Florida spot for Republican Byron Donalds cost over $2.5 million and pledged a ratepayer protection plan. Georgia has drawn about 30% of all data center ad spending and more than half of GOP spending, and its governor’s race leads with $12.8 million across nine ads. Similar lines have appeared in Iowa for Rob Sand and in Kansas for Ty Masterson.

AI-synthesized from multiple reported sources