They blocked a datacenter. Now they're running for office.
A grassroots movement against AI infrastructure is turning community anger into local political power, starting with the first US city to ban datacenter construction.
Key points
- Monterey Park, California became the first US city to ban datacenter construction after four months of community organising.
- Steven Kung, who led that campaign, is now running for a seat on the city council against the incumbent who backed the facility.
- Anti-datacenter sentiment is moving into electoral politics across the United States.
- Kung says the fight exposed what he calls a breakdown in local democratic process.
Steven Kung did not plan to run for office. He planned to stop a datacenter, a large warehouse-style building packed with computer servers that companies use to run AI tools, from being built near his home in Monterey Park, a city just east of Los Angeles.
Four months of teach-ins and door-knocking later, Monterey Park became the first city in the United States to ban new datacenter construction outright. Now Kung is on the ballot.
What is actually driving this movement?
The opposition is about land, noise, power and water. Datacenters consume vast amounts of electricity and water to keep their servers cool, running around the clock. For residents nearby, that means constant noise, higher local energy demand and land that can't be used for housing or parks.
"The datacenter coming to my neighborhood turned my life upside down," Kung told The Guardian. "I saw that there's a dismantling of democracy at a local level."
His argument isn't purely environmental. He's saying decisions about where these facilities go are made by developers and city officials without meaningful input from people who'll live next door. That argument is finding an audience, and as our 27 August story on who decides datacenter locations found, it's a live question on both sides of the Atlantic.
Who is paying for these datacenters, and who profits?
The money comes from large technology companies and the investors backing AI development. Demand for datacenter space has surged as companies race to build systems that require massive computing power. Developers court local governments with promises of tax revenue and jobs, which is why incumbents often back the projects.
Kung's opponent in the council race backed exactly that pitch. The election is, in effect, a direct vote on who gets to decide where AI infrastructure lands.
| Factor | What residents say | What developers say |
|---|---|---|
| Noise | Constant hum from cooling systems | Within legal limits |
| Energy use | Strains local grid | Creates tax revenue |
| Water use | Draws from local supply | Uses standard amounts |
| Jobs | Few permanent local positions | Construction and maintenance work |
| Planning input | Bypassed community | Followed all approvals |
Survivorship bias is real here. Monterey Park won. Most communities don't. Developers with deep pockets and relationships at city hall have defeated far more challenges than they've lost, and Kung's story stands out precisely because it's rare.
What does this mean for your community?
If a datacenter proposal lands near you, local planning meetings are where it can be slowed or stopped. Those meetings are public, often sparsely attended, and early opposition carries more weight than opposition after a vote.
The one doable thing: find out who on your local council voted to approve or reject any nearby AI infrastructure project. That vote is public record and, as Monterey Park shows, it's now a campaign issue.
The pattern to watch isn't Kung alone. It's whether other blocked developers respond by working around local councils entirely, at the state or federal level. That's the next fight, and local wins like this one may only accelerate it.
