Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) is scheduling Wednesday votes on two House-passed bills addressing AI-driven data centers and stock trading by members of Congress, seeking to help Republican incumbents Jon Husted of Ohio, Pete Ricketts of Nebraska and Dan Sullivan of Alaska. Their November races are closely contested, and the results could determine whether Thune remains Senate majority leader in 2027. Democrats plan to oppose the measures, arguing that both have been weakened. Sen. Jacky Rosen (Nev.) called the data center bill a hastily assembled political rescue effort for Husted, who faces former Sen. Sherrod Brown (D) in Ohio. Recent polls put Brown ahead by an average of nearly 4 points, while 75% of Ohio voters in one poll opposed building data centers in their communities. Brown’s campaign has portrayed Husted as the face of data centers in Ohio, citing his efforts to recruit facilities, offer tax incentives and accelerate approvals amid rising electricity bills. Ricketts is in a tight Nebraska contest with Independent Dan Osborn, and Sullivan is running neck and neck with former Rep. Mary Peltola (D) in Alaska as forecasts increasingly point to a possible Democratic Senate takeover. The Ratepayer Protection Act, sponsored by Husted, would ask states to consider standards requiring data centers to cover infrastructure upgrades associated with higher energy use. The House passed it 417-3 on Sept. 16, with three Democrats opposed. The Stop Insider Trading Act, sponsored by Ricketts, would generally bar members of Congress, their spouses and dependent children from buying new stocks and require public notice before existing stocks are sold. It also includes a photo-identification requirement for voters tied to the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE America) Act, a priority of President Trump. The House approved it 232-198 in July, with 13 Democrats voting in favor. Democrats say the bills leave loopholes and do not impose meaningful safeguards. Schumer called the data center measure a toothless messaging bill and said the stock proposal would not fully ban congressional stock trading, would not cover the president and would allow members to retain and sell existing holdings and trade privately held companies. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) said the stock measure does not go far enough. The Democratic candidates have used the issues against the Republican senators: Osborn has criticized Ricketts over Facebook’s Papillion, Neb., data center and alleged that Ricketts earned an estimated $10 million in the stock market in April 2025; Peltola has accused Sullivan of becoming three times richer through stock trading. A WinSenate super PAC aligned with Senate Democratic leadership separately claimed Sullivan had nearly quadrupled his net worth and cut healthcare for Alaskans while in Congress. Thune argues that blocking the bills would make it harder for Democrats to campaign against the three Republicans on data centers and congressional trading. If approved by the Senate, both measures would go to the president’s desk because they have already passed the House.