Voters reject data centers

While U.S.tech companies race forBy a 40-point margin, voters oppose building data centers in their area to support artificial intelligence (30% favor, 70% oppose).

MAGA supporters (46% favor) and Republican men (45%) are the groups most likely to favor data centers, while White women with a college degree (84% oppose) and liberal voters (80%) are the most opposed.

Among those favoring data centers, 60% citeeconomic benefits, including jobs, economic growth, community investment, and tax revenue as the reason for their support.Another 21% point to technological benefits, saying the centers are useful, necessary, or important for future progress.Just 2% say staying ahead of competitors is the primary reason for their support.

Those opposing data centers emphasize a different set of considerations.Half (50%) say environmental issues are their main concern, including energy and water use, pollution, noise, and overall environmental impact, while far fewer mention quality-of-life concerns (14%), economic effects (11%), or simply having a negative view of AI (11%).

While data centers are broadly unpopular, views ofartificial intelligence technologyitself are somewhat less negative.Overall, 45% view AI favorably versus 54% unfavorably, underwater by 9 points.In April, it was -11 points.

Positive views of AI are higher among MAGA Republicans (55% favorable), voters with graduate degrees (52%), conservatives (50%), and men (49%) than among Democrats (41%), those without a college degree (43%), liberals (37%), and women (40%).

Nearly 8 in 10 voters prefer slower data center construction to addressenvironmental and community concerns, while 2 in 10 favor building them as quickly as possible to maintain a competitive advantage over China and other countries.

While majorities across the board prefer the slow adoption of the centers,MAGA Republicans(36%) and very conservatives (35%) are the most likely to prioritize rapid expansion to maintain international competitiveness.

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AI won’t find an ally in the under 30 crowd

Although younger voters are often viewed as more tech-savvy, that does not translate into warm views of artificial intelligence.

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Voters under age 30 are the least likely to view AI favorably, at 38%, compared with 48% of those ages 30-44 and 44% of those 45 and over.

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Regardless of differences in views of AI, attitudes toward data centers are pretty consistent across generations.Roughly 7 in 10 in every age group oppose building data centers, and about 8 in 10 prefer slowing construction to address environmental and local concerns.

Conducted July 17–20, 2026, under the direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw &Respondents spoke with live interviewers on landlines (70) and cellphones (681) or completed the survey online after receiving a text (252).Results based on the full sample have a margin of sampling error of ±3 percentage points.The survey includes an oversample of 200 voters aged 18–29, bringing the sample size for that subgroup to 350 (±5).Sampling error for results among subgroups is higher.In addition to sampling errors, question wording and order can influence results.Weights are generally applied to age, race, education, and area variables to ensure the demographics are representative of the registered voter population.