Most Americans oppose AI data centres, but few will vote on it
A New York Times/Siena University poll finds 61 percent of likely voters against building new data centres, yet the issue barely registers when people rank what matters most in the midterms.
Key points
- 61 percent of 1,503 likely voters surveyed in early September opposed building new data centres to power AI, according to a New York Times/Siena University poll released Tuesday.
- Of those opposed, 38 percent wanted a total ban and 56 percent preferred limits on construction.
- Environmental concerns and water usage were the top reason for opposition, cited by 32 percent of opponents.
- AI and data centres registered below 1 percent as a deciding midterm issue for most voter groups.
- A separate Gallup poll in May found seven in ten Americans opposed local data centre construction.
Six in ten Americans don't want more AI data centres built. That's the headline from a New York Times and Siena University poll out Tuesday: 61 percent of 1,503 likely voters surveyed in early September opposed construction of the large warehouse-style facilities that house the computers powering AI services. Only 14 percent said they strongly support it.
The partisan split was not clean. Among people who voted for Donald Trump in 2024, opinion was nearly even at 49 percent support to 45 percent opposed. Voters who backed Kamala Harris came in at 74 percent opposed, and people who sat out the election at 67 percent opposed.
What are people actually worried about?
Environment and water use topped the list. Data centres consume enormous volumes of water to cool their servers, and that cost clearly registers with voters. Among those opposed to construction, 32 percent named environment and water usage as their main concern, impact on local communities came second at 21 percent, general distrust of AI at 18 percent, regulatory concerns at 10 percent, and economic worries at 9 percent.
Most opponents didn't want data centres gone entirely: 56 percent preferred limits and tighter rules, while 38 percent called for a total ban.
This poll isn't an outlier. An NBC News poll in March placed AI's approval below that of ICE, the federal immigration enforcement agency. The water concerns driving opposition aren't abstract. Our reporting on Texas Governor Greg Abbott's order forcing data centres to disclose water consumption, published two days before this poll, shows why: facilities routinely resist disclosure. And AI's energy appetite is only growing, as we reported on 15 September when a BloombergNEF forecast projected US data centres could consume more natural gas than Germany and Japan combined by 2035.
Does the anger actually change anything?
At the ballot box, probably not much. Despite strong feelings, AI and data centres landed below one percent as a priority for most voter groups when people ranked what would decide their midterm vote. The economy, foreign policy and inflation dominated. Even among 18-to-29-year-olds, only three percent named AI infrastructure as their top concern.
On party trust, the 554 respondents who answered that question split almost evenly: 42 percent trusted Republicans, 40 percent trusted Democrats, and 18 percent had no preference or declined.
The dislike is genuine and widespread. What it isn't, at least right now, is the kind of thing that pulls people away from kitchen-table concerns. Watch for local and state-level fights, where water use and community impact make data centre opposition concrete and personal rather than a general feeling about AI. That's where this sentiment is most likely to bite.
