Opposition to AI server projects is spreading across rural Texas and other states, pressuring Greg Abbott and giving Democrat Gina Hinojosa a potential opening with conservative voters.
Data centers that power artificial intelligence have become a flashpoint in the Texas governor’s race, where Democratic nominee Gina Hinojosa is trying to turn rural anger over water use, power costs and land impacts into a broader challenge to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott. The issue is also surfacing in statewide contests from Ohio to Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, as communities push back against large server facilities over concerns including secrecy, pollution, rising electricity bills and pressure on farmland and open space. Texas sits at the center of that fight. A JLL report says the state is poised to overtake northern Virginia as the largest global data center market by 2030, helped by abundant land and energy and a regulatory climate favorable to development. In west Texas and the panhandle, large projects are being built, including one near Amarillo described as the world’s largest, while Google is building four data centers in northwest Texas. Supporters say the investments strengthen U.S. innovation, cybersecurity and energy capacity, and President Donald Trump has made data centers a priority in the competition with China over AI. Critics argue the projects are moving ahead with too little transparency and too few rules. In Texas, the concern is heightened because counties lack zoning authority (local land-use control), limiting communities’ ability to block projects. Abbott, who promoted Google’s $40 billion Texas investment in November and said "Texas is the epicenter of AI development," has recently shifted tone. He ordered regulators to take steps aimed at ensuring Texans were not paying higher electricity bills because of data centers and said he would seek legislation next year to regulate them, including ending the state’s billion-dollar-plus-per-year tax break and stopping construction in "rural Texas neighborhoods." Hinojosa dismissed that language as "doublespeak that makes no sense to anyone" and said she would block a permit if a project was not a good deal for Texans or if residents had not had a say. The backlash cuts across party lines. Critics include Democrats, Republicans and Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller. Ranchers and local officials say fears over water shortages are especially potent in a drought-prone state, with some warning that data centers could end up ahead of agricultural users if shortages worsen. Protest groups have formed, including one in Lubbock led by Republicans, and some conservative opponents say they may not support Abbott even if they do not vote for Hinojosa. Whether that frustration is enough to shift rural voting patterns remains uncertain, but opponents say it may be nudging some voters away from straight-ticket Republican support.