Meta Platforms president Dina Powell McCormick said on Nov. 4 that building data centers would become harder after the 2026 midterms, though perhaps less difficult than it appeared at the time. She pointed to opposition featured in campaign ads and exit polls as one of several factors behind Democrats’ widespread victories, according to The Wall Street Journal’s account of her remarks.
Election results set the political backdrop; each state’s proposed response has its own path from campaign promise to policy.
Ballot results point to broad opposition
A CBS News report published Nov. 6 said at least 44 of 47 proposed measures to restrict data centers had passed, with a few results still pending. An earlier CBS News broadcast, published Nov. 5, gave a separate tally: it described about 41 local measures across roughly 13 states and said 39 of 40 counted measures moved to restrict development. These are separate reported snapshots.
Texas and Georgia officials outlined plans for new construction
CBS News reported that Texas governor-elect Gina Hinojosa wanted to halt new data-center construction until safeguards were in place. Georgia governor-elect Keisha Lance Bottoms said she planned to sign an executive order pausing new construction after taking office in January and review agreements tied to data-center incentives.
The same CBS News report put Texas’s statewide data-center count at 169 operational facilities, 118 under construction and more than 500 planned. It also reported that Texas accounted for 25% to 30% of data-center capacity expected to come online by 2030.
