A person holds signs during a nationwide protest against AI data center expansion in New Port Richey, Florida on July 18, 2026.
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In campaign ads airing everywhere from Georgia to Iowa, Republicans and Democrats are confronting the same enemy: data centers powering the artificial intelligence boom.
An NPR analysis of political advertising data from the firm AdImpact found that since January, campaigns and outside groups have spent more than $45 million on ads mentioning data centers in this year's gubernatorial, House and Senate races.
The two major parties driving that spending are largely making the same argument: the sprawling facilities get too many tax breaks, drive up electricity bills and need reining in.
From January to August, spending was nearly identical: over $22 million supported Republican candidates and more than $21 million for Democratic candidates, with independents driving the rest. Still, Democrats ran almost twice as many ads as Republicans — 127 compared to 67 — and spread their messaging across more states and races. The ads are clustered in states with competitive races, like Wisconsin and Michigan.
Mentions of data centers have grown from just a handful in ads from January, to 62 in June, more than 110 in July and about 164 in August, as the election draws nearer and the issue continues to heat up.
A June Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 77% of Americans are concerned about data centers raising electricity costs and two-thirds of Democrats and half of Republicans said they'd oppose a data center in their community.
This bipartisan anxiety helps explain why candidates in both parties are talking about the issue. Michael Franz, co-director of the Wesleyan Media Project, which tracks political advertising, said data centers give each side the talking points it wants.
Apart from a chance to talk about affordability, "Democrats can latch on to environmental concerns," Franz said, adding that for Republicans, criticizing data centers is a way "to go in opposition to big corporations, in opposition to a system that doesn't care about you."
Data centers are a unique issue where "MAGA Republicans and liberal Democrats" land in the same place, he said.
Ads from both parties are tying data centers to rising energy costs.
A Believe in Wisconsin PAC ad for Wisconsin's Democratic gubernatorial nominee David Crowley, which the group spent $634,795 to air in August, promises that Crowley "will lower costs, make housing affordable, stop AI data centers from making your energy bills skyrocket."
Byron Donalds, Florida's Republican gubernatorial nominee, casts himself as a check on data centers, by vowing to "protect Florida families and communities from data centers that jack up utility rates and make everything else more expensive," and "fight for a ratepayer protection plan." The Friends of Byron Donalds PAC paid over $2.5 million to air the ad.
Similar ads have run in support of Democrat Rob Sand in Iowa and Republican Ty Masterson in Kansas.
A Republican Party operative spoke to NPR about this on condition of anonymity, and said the party is not commenting publicly on data centers because the views within the party vary. They said "The most popular answer that we've seen is: We could potentially have data centers as long as they pay for their own energy," adding that data centers are necessary to win the race against China "and increase jobs in local communities."
