Voters mostly don’t like AI and data centers, but neither party seems to have an edge

Poll data released Tuesday by the New York Times and Siena University confirms what we’ve already been seeing, and what politicians are responding to — AI and data centers are incredibly unpopular. Asked if they support or oppose the construction of data centers to power AI tech, 61 percent of the 1,503 likely voters surveyed in early September (ahead of the recent AI safety slowdown discussion) said they were opposed, with only 14 percent saying they strongly support. The split was about even among 2024 Donald Trump voters, at 49 percent support to 45 percent oppose, while people who had voted for Kamala Harris or who didn’t vote leaned oppose, at 74 percent and 67 percent, respectively.

56 percent of voters surveyed who said they were opposed to data centers said they supported limits, while 38 percent instead preferred a total ban. The list of reasons for opposition is also revealing, with the environment/water usage most common at 32 percent, impact on local communities at 21 percent, general distrust or dislike of AI at 18 percent, followed by regulation concerns and the economy at 10 and 9 percent.

Still, the data released today ranked AI and data centers low on the list of issues that voters saw as most important in deciding their midterm vote. Across the board, AI and data centers registered at less than one percent for most demographics, with exceptions for younger voters like the 18-29 group, where three percent picked that one instead of the most popular responses like the economy, foreign policy, inflation, and opposition to Trump/Republicans. Voters in either party still overwhelmingly picked their own party as the one they trusted to handle the issue, while overall the 554 respondents had 40 percent favoring Democrats, 42 percent favoring Republicans, and 18 percent saying they didn’t know or refused.