Democrats U-Turn on AI Data Centers to Weaponize Fear During Midterm Elections

Several prominent Democrat governors including potential 2028 presidential candidates are dramatically shifting their positions on AI data centers as voter concerns mount. Breitbart News social media director Wynton Hall, the author of the upcoming book Code Red, says that Democrats will weaponize AI job loss fears heading into the midterm elections.

Axios reports that a significant political realignment is underway as top Democrat leaders who previously championed AI infrastructure projects now adopt more cautious stances in response to constituent backlash. Governors who once eagerly courted data center development with generous tax incentives are implementing new restrictions and oversight measures as public anxiety about artificial intelligence intensifies across the political spectrum.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D), Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D), and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) have all modified their approaches to data center development in recent weeks. These politicians, all considered potential contenders for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination, had previously embraced such projects as economic engines that would create jobs, strengthen relationships with labor unions, enhance competitiveness with China, and satisfy Silicon Valley technology executives.

The reversal represents a stark change from just months ago when these same leaders competed to attract data center investments through substantial financial incentives and regulatory accommodations. The projects initially appeared politically advantageous, promising employment opportunities and technological advancement. However, growing public concern about electricity costs and artificial intelligence’s potential to eliminate jobs has forced a political recalculation.

Pritzker’s trajectory illustrates the shifting landscape. In 2019, before ChatGPT brought AI into mainstream consciousness, he signed legislation providing tax breaks for data center development. Chicago subsequently became one of the nation’s leading data center hubs. As household electricity bills increased, however, some residents connected these costs to data center operations. During his State of the State address last week, Pritzker proposed a two-year moratorium on tax incentives for data centers.

Shapiro’s evolution has been similarly pronounced. Last year, he declared Pennsylvania was “all in on AI” and celebrated a $20 billion Amazon investment in the state. Following complaints from residents about data centers in their communities, Shapiro called for enhanced oversight during his budget address this month, saying: “I know Pennsylvanians have real concerns about these data centers … and so do I.”

On Friday, Shapiro told reporters that his position was “not really a switch” but rather formalizing what had already been the expectations for data center companies.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D), also eyeing a potential White House bid, outlined an approach that is rapidly becoming the Democratic template for managing data center politics. In an interview with Axios, Beshear said data center developers in his state should do three things: “Pay for 100% of your power,” “pay your fair share of taxes,” and “be embraced by the community.”

Breitbart News social media director Wynton Hall predicted the Democrats’ plans in a major piece published this week that outlines the Democrat strategy of weaponizing voter fears over AI job loss and other factors before the midterms. Hall’s upcoming book, Code Red: The Left, the Right, China, and the Race to Control AI, explores the wide-ranging implications of AI and how the conservative movement can create an effective approach to this revolutionary technology.

Hall explains that the Democrat plan on AI hinges on four variables:

1) The Money Battle: Massive spending by pro-AI Super PACs like the $125 million Leading the Future, backed by Trump donor heavyweights like Open AI president Greg Brockman and Andreessen Horowitz, will support a pro-AI innovation, light-touch regulations agenda and square off against pro-AI regulation groups, such as the $50 million Public First 501(c)4, which received a $20 million donation from Anthropic. Both groups will support candidates across the political aisle.

2) AI-Washing: Another factor will be whether voter perceptions will be swayed between now and the November elections by so-called “AI-washing”—the business practice of blaming layoffs on artificial intelligence instead of traditional business factors that may embarrass executives or expose their mismanagement.

3) Bipartisan Opposition to Higher Electricity and Water Costs from Data Centers: Third, the Trump Administration’s handling of growing bipartisan affordability concerns over data center construction’s toll on electricity and water costs for local communities will have a major impact. President Trump is currently developing a compact to make sure power-hungry data centers don’t stick working class Americans with the tab. MAGA loyalist and White House Senior Counselor for Trade and Manufacturing Peter Navarro summed it up best: “All of these data center builders,” he said, “need to pay for all, all of the costs,” including electricity, water, and grid strain. “I just want to assure people that we’re on it, we also feel your pain.”

4. Advancements in Agentic AI and Recursive Self-Improvement (RSI): Finally, and perhaps most importantly, much will hinge on the warp-speed developments of the technology itself. Over the next nine months, much can and will accelerate with agentic AI (i.e. agents that can perform real work) and recursive self-improvement (RSI) (AI that autonomously enhances itself). Factors like these could have significant impacts. A single update this month to Anthropic’s Claude Cowork AI agent sparked a nearly $300 billion market sell-off, accelerating the ongoing debate over whether AI agents will eat into Software as a Service (SaaS). Similarly, gains in RSI could prove pivotal. “If the predictions for recursive self-improvement in 2026 is true,” says influential AI expert and Moonshots podcast host Peter Diamandis, “every prediction curve we have accelerates dramatically—and every governance framework, safety protocol, and regulatory approach is already obsolete. We’re building brakes for a car that’s about to become a rocket.”

Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), who was named one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential People in AI, praised Code Red as a “must-read.” She added: “Few understand our conservative fight against Big Tech as Hall does,” making him “uniquely qualified to examine how we can best utilize AI’s enormous potential, while ensuring it does not exploit kids, creators, and conservatives.” Award-winning investigative journalist and Public founder Michael Shellenberger calls Code Red “illuminating,” ”alarming,” and describes the book as “an essential conversation-starter for those hoping to subvert Big Tech’s autocratic plans before it’s too late.”