Texas just elected a governor who wants to pause new data centers

Gina Hinojosa beat Greg Abbott on November 3, becoming the first Democrat elected governor of Texas since Ann Richards in 1990, after campaigning to halt new data-center development until lawmakers pass stronger protections for residents.

The stakes are national: Texas holds roughly 26 percent of planned American data-center capacity, and Jefferies estimated her proposed moratorium could put 13.3 gigawatts of announced Texas projects at risk of delay or abandonment.

She also wants to ban nondisclosure agreements that keep communities in the dark, require proof that projects will not raise household water or electricity bills, and end the tax breaks that drew developers — though lasting tax and zoning changes would still need the legislature, and a moratorium could face legal challenges.