AI data center backlash: Public opposition to new projects is growing

As AI-driven data center development booms across the U.S., a growing bipartisan backlash is emerging from communities facing rising electricity costs, noise, and environmental concerns. In Q2 2025 alone, 20 data center projects worth nearly $100 billion were canceled or delayed by community opposition. The article examines how data center issues are reshaping local and state elections in Georgia, Virginia, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, with residents and activists organizing against new facilities and challenging the industry's promises of economic benefit with few downsides.