Opposition to local data center construction has reached 69% nationally, and for the first time a clear majority of Republicans say they do not want the facilities near them β a shift that turns the biggest growth category in U.S. nonresidential construction into a local land-use problem heading into the midterm elections.
The figures come from an NBC News Decision Desk Poll powered by SurveyMonkey, fielded Aug. 20 through Sept. 1 and published Sept. 6. Forty-five percent of respondents said they “strongly oppose” AI data center construction in their local area.
For developers, the number that matters is the partisan one. Republicans opposed local data centers 57% to 43% β still the most supportive group, but no longer a constituency that reliably delivers approvals. Democrats opposed at 81% and independents at 71%.
Why a poll is a real estate story
Data center projects do not clear on federal policy. They clear on rezonings, conditional use permits, water and sewer agreements, and utility interconnection deals negotiated at the county and municipal level β the same approval stack that governs any large development.
That is why sentiment converts directly into schedule and cost. Data Center Watch, a project of the AI intelligence firm 10a Labs, reported that opponents blocked or delayed at least 75 projects worth roughly $130 billion between January and March 2026, the most in any quarter since it began tracking in 2023. The group counted 833 active opposition organizations across 49 states, more than double the 396 it recorded at the end of 2025, with Maryland, Ohio and Texas the most organized states.
The same report tallied more than 300 data center bills introduced in statehouses in the first six weeks of 2026, which its authors described as “a clear shift from incentive-focused policies toward regulatory oversight as the scale of energy demands became clearer.”
Those delays land on an expensive asset class. Cushman & Wakefield’s 2026 development cost guide put all-in greenfield costs at roughly $17.6 million per megawatt and found that costs have risen 21% per megawatt since late 2024, with powered land in primary U.S. markets averaging $584,000 per megawatt β 51% higher than a year earlier. Carrying that land through an extended entitlement fight is a material cost, not a rounding error.
The politics have crossed party lines
The poll arrives as data center siting shows up in competitive races. In Ohio, Rep. Marcy Kaptur, a Democrat, has campaigned on the issue against Republican opponent Derek Merrin. Republican Sen. Jon Husted of Ohio has introduced legislation that would require data centers to cover the infrastructure costs they impose.
Dawn Vogel, a Republican county supervisor in Iowa, told NBC News: “I haven’t talked to a single voter at home who wants data centers.”
President Donald Trump has pushed the other way, writing on Truth Social that communities should want data centers “if they want to be successful and rich, with far lower taxes and jobs.”
States are already writing the constraints into law. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro signed an executive order Aug. 18 removing AI data center proposals from the state’s fast-track permitting process, barring state agencies from signing new nondisclosure agreements with developers, and directing the Department of Environmental Protection to review permits only where developers have made binding commitments on energy affordability, environmental standards and community engagement β and have secured local approval first.
A trend line, not a spike
Three independent surveys now point the same direction, though they measure slightly different things and are not directly comparable.
Gallup, in a release dated May 13 covering a March 2-18 survey of 1,000 adults, found 71% opposed a local AI data center and 25% in favor. The Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania reported Aug. 11 that opposition in its own tracking rose 12 points from March to 61%, based on 1,320 adults surveyed June 16 to July 19, with support falling to 14%.
“What stands out is the contrast,” Annenberg research analyst Shawn Patterson Jr. said of the 12-point move. “That’s a dramatic move.”
RealtyWire has tracked the same pattern through statehouse and county-level pushback since the summer, including a Michigan Senate nominee’s reversal in favor of a one-year moratorium.
What it means
Verified: three separate national surveys taken between March and September show majority opposition to local data centers, the newest putting it at 69% with majority Republican opposition. Verified: at least 75 projects worth about $130 billion were blocked or delayed in a single quarter, per Data Center Watch’s own tracking.
Attributed interpretation: Annenberg’s researchers read the movement as a genuine shift rather than noise.
RealtyWire analysis: the practical effect for owners and developers is that entitlement risk is repricing faster than construction cost. Land assembly, power procurement and community agreements now sit ahead of steel and switchgear in the critical path, and the competition for sites is spilling into other property types β homebuilders have said data centers are outbidding them for land. Sponsors underwriting to 2024-era approval timelines are underwriting to a market that no longer exists.
What to watch: whether more states follow Pennsylvania in conditioning permits on prior local approval, and whether November’s results produce statehouses willing to legislate moratoriums rather than incentives. Further technology and AI coverage tracks the buildout.
