Gallup survey finds most Americans oppose local AI data centers

In short: A new Gallup survey finds that most Americans do not want AI data centers built near where they live.

What's going on

Gallup reports that 71 percent of Americans oppose building data centers in their local area. Data centers are large buildings filled with computers that store and process information, like a giant warehouse for the internet.

Support is low. Only 7 percent of people surveyed said they are “strongly” in favor of new data centers.

Gallup says dislike is so strong that Americans would rather live near a nuclear power plant than a data center. Even at the highest point of opposition to nuclear power plant construction, Gallup notes it reached 63 percent, which is still lower than the opposition to data centers in this new survey.

Gallup based its results on two surveys. One took place in March 2026 with 1,000 randomly selected adults across all 50 states and Washington, DC. Another survey ran in April 2026 with 2,054 adults from the Gallup Panel.

When people opposed data centers, the top reason was resource use. Half of opponents said their main concern was the impact on water and electricity. Gallup also found opposition was highest among Democrats (75 percent), followed by independents (74 percent) and Republicans (63 percent).

What to watch

Data center builders often point to jobs as a benefit, and Gallup found that 55 percent of supporters cited job opportunities as their main reason. Watch for more local fights over proposed sites, especially in places where electricity prices are rising and where water supplies are already tight.

Source: The Verge AI