Ohio voters rejected data centers in all 18 communities that voted on measures to limit or ban them, with margins of up to 87% in Perry and 77% in Upper Sandusky. Conserve Ohio is pushing a constitutional amendment and a 12-month moratorium.
Ohio voters sharply rejected data centers in this year's elections. In 18 communities across the state, measures were voted on to limit or ban their development, and in all of them voters decided that, indeed, that was a good idea.
In most cases, the results were resounding. In Wilmington, the county seat of Clinton County, officials asked voters to rezone four parcels to allow data center development: about 80% rejected all four. In Perry, in Lake County, more than 87% backed an initiative requiring data centers that accept tax incentives to take out a bond — a kind of insurance policy — backing up their promises of local tax revenue.
In Piqua, voters banned data centers within city limits by a 2-to-1 margin, and they did not stop there: they also recalled three city commissioners — including the mayor and vice mayor — for approving a Meta data center in November last year.
From Conneaut, at the far northeastern end of Ashtabula County, to Trenton, in southwestern Butler County, nine communities passed initiatives modeled on the statewide data center moratorium that Conserve Ohio organizers are trying to put on the ballot in 2027. That initiative would amend the state constitution to prohibit any data center drawing more than 25 megawatts a month.
In a statement, Conserve Ohio congratulated the communities that voted against data center development and warned elected officials: «You cannot look away now.»
«The above election results demonstrate that when communities have a say regarding the construction of a hyperscale data center in their local area, they overwhelmingly say no,» the group wrote. «Your oath is invoked. Stop the self-dealing, corporate fealty, and greed. Represent and serve the people who elected you.»
Conserve Ohio urged citizens to pressure state lawmakers to pass a 12-month moratorium on any data center development in Ohio during the lame duck session, between now and the end of the year.
Angela Huffman is a sixth-generation farmer in northwest Ohio and heads the national watchdog group Farm Action, which focuses on corporate consolidation in the food and agriculture sector. She explained that data centers came onto their radar about a year ago, because of their impact on farmland.
«And then, lo and behold, I read in the newspaper back in June of this year that a data center, a nearly $1 billion data center, was proposed right outside Upper Sandusky, about 10 miles (some 16 kilometers) from my farm,» Huffman said.
Upper Sandusky is the county seat of Wyandot County, but it is a small city with fewer than 7,000 residents. In June, the company Smartland Energy proposed building a 150-megawatt natural gas plant on a 46-acre parcel. The idea was to build the power plant first and then sell the power directly to a data center client on an adjacent 100-acre parcel.
Smartland emphasized that it «would not build, own, or run» the data center, and that the eventual end user would still need city approval and had not been pre-selected.
Huffman and other organizers began collecting signatures to oppose the project and, unlike many petition drives, she said their job was relatively easy.
«Really our challenge was just finding ways to get in front of people,» she said. «They already knew about the issue. They were already concerned about data centers. So fortunately, we did not have to first educate or raise awareness about what the problem was. They already knew. We just had to get their names on these petitions in time.»
Huffman noted that construction of a Louis Dreyfus Company soybean processing plant was already straining local infrastructure, and a data center adding further strain was a daunting prospect.
When Upper Sandusky voters went to the polls last Tuesday, nearly 77% approved an amendment to the city charter banning data centers within city limits.
In a Facebook post last Thursday, Smartland Energy seemingly acknowledged that its project has no future in Upper Sandusky. The company thanked the community and reiterated its confidence in the proposal.
«At the same time,» it stated, «we value and respect the democratic process and the outcome of the charter amendment vote.»
«Our team will take some time to come together, reflect on this process and discuss the outcome,» Smartland added. «If there is ever anything further to share, this will be the first place we communicate it.»
The drubbing data centers took in Ohio did not stop at the state line. Around the country, 47 initiatives to restrict data centers were on the ballot. Election officials are still counting votes in two of those contests, but according to the website Data Centers on the Ballot, 44 jurisdictions rejected data centers and only one welcomed them.
A day after the election, industry group Infrastructure for America released what it called a «good actor pledge.» Its members, including Compass, Digital Realty, QTS and Vantage, committed to operating transparently, investing in their communities and not being a drain on local power and water infrastructure.
Dan Diorio, who heads state policy and government affairs for the Data Center Coalition, said the industry can advance the issues Americans care about, such as jobs and the economy.
«Data centers can play a crucial role in advancing affordability for Americans through job creation, local tax revenue, and bringing investment and opportunity to local communities,» Diorio said.
He added that the industry is committed to learning what communities need and earning their trust, and that developers are ready to comply with local standards and deliver «clear benefits» to their neighbors.
«Communities that signal that they are closed for business and investment may miss out on those opportunities,» Diorio said, «relinquishing substantial long-term economic investment, high-wage jobs and critical tax revenue to neighboring areas or other states.»
For Huffman, the election results underscore the importance of communities having a voice in major developments such as data centers. She stressed that she does not oppose artificial intelligence or development in general, but that the way the industry has been operating feels «predatory.»
Between tax abatements for developers and the lack of local protections or input, «it's really been tilted in favor of big tech,» she said, «at the expense of Ohio.»
«I think that's where a lot of the pushback started,» Huffman added. «If this had been more of a level playing field from the start, I don't think there would have been as much opposition.»
