# After the midterms, things are looking rocky for Elon Musk and data centers

DevFeed: [After the midterms, things are looking rocky for Elon Musk and data centers](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/after-the-midterms-things-are-looking-rocky-for-elon-musk-and-data-centers-122298.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://techcrunch.com/2026/11/07/after-the-midterms-things-are-looking-rocky-for-elon-musk-and-data-centers/>)

Author: Anthony Ha

Published: 2026-11-07T22:07:22Z

Content type: article

Language: en

Sources: [TechCrunch | AI News & Artificial Intelligence](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/techcrunch-ai-news-artificial-intelligence.md>)

Topics: [clean energy data centers](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/clean-energy-data-centers.md>)

Tags: [ai](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/ai.md>), [compute-campus-policy-blueprint](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/compute-campus-policy-blueprint.md>), [data-centers](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/data-centers.md>), [elon-musk](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/elon-musk.md>), [government-policy](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/government-policy.md>), [hyperscalers](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/hyperscalers.md>), [midterms](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/midterms.md>), [openai](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/openai.md>), [tech-industry](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/tech-industry.md>)

## AI overview

The midterm results could make data center expansion harder: many local measures imposing restrictions or moratoriums passed, and elected officials including Texas governor-elect Gina Hinojosa have pledged to address the issue. The discussion says opposition has grown across party lines amid secrecy around approvals, limited disclosure of project scale, and concerns about water use in sensitive regions; it was a grassroots concern, not necessarily the main cause of Democrats' gains. Kirsten Korosec points to OpenAI's compute campus policy blueprint, which says the company will drop NDAs and share plans, as evidence that companies may respond to regulatory signals. The proposed "compute campus" label drew skepticism from the speakers. They also cite investor reluctance to fund heavy data center spending, while noting that companies may still need more facilities to reach their desired scale.

## Source excerpt

On Equity, we unpacked what the midterms mean for the tech industry.