Texas election results put data center expansion under pressure

Texas’s position as the fastest-growing data center market in the US faces uncertainty after Democratic election victories. James Talarico won a US Senate seat, Gina Hinojosa won the governor’s race, and Democrats will control the Texas House for the first time in 24 years. Data centers were a central campaign issue, raising questions about the future of Big Tech’s ambitious AI infrastructure plans in the state.

Democrats also took control of both chambers of Congress, but major federal climate and energy legislation remains unlikely while Trump is president. State and local election results could have greater consequences for electricity grids, data center development, renewable energy and greenhouse gas emissions.

A separate permitting proposal could accelerate energy infrastructure construction. The Senate is set to vote on November 9 on the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act (BAAJA), which could begin an overhaul of the slow, complicated approval process for energy projects. Some environmental groups oppose the bill or parts of it, highlighting tensions around efforts to streamline infrastructure development.