THE SHORT VERSION

76% of voters say no data center in their town

Satirical cartoon: a lone elderly voter in an orange vest sits at a folding table at the Riverdale town entrance holding up a paper marked BALLOT, stopping a gigantic data-center complex on wheels from rolling into town. — Machine Age Cartoon · Zimbo

More than 79,000 voters surveyed for CNN's Voter Poll said AI and data centers shaped their midterm vote: 23 percent called the issue crucial and another 33 percent called it a major factor, and among the crucial group, Democratic House candidates won 66 percent to 31 percent.

The backlash is local and lopsided: 76 percent said they would oppose a data center being built in their own community, 57 percent said AI will mostly hurt society against 24 percent who said it will mostly help, and 43 percent said they trust neither party to handle AI.

That verdict lands on top of the ballot fight already on this page: at least 41 local measures took aim at data-center building, and the poll suggests the town-by-town resistance is now a national voting bloc rather than a NIMBY footnote.