'This has become a sleeper issue for the entire election cycle': Republican Party tells top AI firms to do something about rising US data center opposition

• GOP privately warns AI firms' data centers threaten their election chances
• More than 4,000 data centers now operate across the entire United States
• Communities say data centers drain water and spike local electricity bills

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) has privately warned the US's leading AI firms that data centers are becoming a political liability.

According to Axios, the memo says perceptions of these facilities could determine the outcome of a critical Ohio Senate race.

The NRSC memo, titled "Ohio Data Center Risk," argues that AI companies must explain who benefits from these projects and who actually pays for them.

A warning wrapped in political urgency

A recent Fox News poll shows Republican Sen. Jon Husted — a longtime supporter of data centers — trailing Democratic challenger Sherrod Brown by eight points.

Republican officials fear that a loss in Ohio would send a signal to lawmakers nationwide that data centers are politically toxic.

"If he loses and data centers get the blame, politicians across the country will take notice — and they will not go near the next one," the memo says.

Brown's campaign has spent millions of dollars this summer on advertising that frames Husted as the face of data center expansion in Ohio, and Republicans describe him as an anchor around the senator's chances.

The committee's language suggests real alarm inside the party, since it warns that unresolved backlash will spread well beyond a single state contest.

Beyond Ohio, a broader industry problem

There are now more than 4,000 data centers operating across the United States, with roughly 3,000 additional facilities either proposed or already under construction.

Communities near these sites have objected to their enormous electricity demands and their strain on local water supplies.

Despite these demands and strains, data centers create a relatively small number of permanent jobs once construction ends.

Andrew Stokols, a researcher at Singapore Management University, said that data centers do not necessarily generate a meaningful ripple effect for local employment but can be used “as an engine for broader digital development”

Nvidia and OpenAI recently announced a new Ohio project, joining existing plans from Meta, Vantage, and QTS in the same state.

Even officials who once welcomed such investment are shifting course, including Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who signed an executive order this week imposing stricter guardrails on future data center development.

Republicans say Brown has effectively made data centers his "de facto opponent," and internal polling reportedly shows the facilities are about as popular as nuclear waste storage among voters.

The dispute in Ohio reveals a wider tension facing the AI industry as it races to build the infrastructure needed for future growth.

Public skepticism toward data centers appears to be intensifying just as both parties recalculate how closely to align with the technology sector.

The outcome of the Ohio race may ultimately shape how American politicians and their allies elsewhere approach this same issue for years to come.

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