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By Alice Gibbs
Senior Reporter
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State Senator Cindy Holscher narrowly won the Kansas gubernatorial race on Thursday, adding to the wave of Democratic victories across the country.
The extremely tight race saw one issue emerge as a key dividing line: data centers. Holscher promised to pause new data center development, while her opponent—Republican state Senator Ty Masterson—opposed a statewide moratorium, though he pledged stronger safeguards for communities hosting data centers.
The election, which took place on November 3, was finally called late Thursday evening, and fewer than 8,000 votes separated the two candidates. Newsweek has contacted Holscher and Masterson for comment via email.
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How Data Centers Became Key Electoral Issue
Data centers—which provide the computing power behind AI, cloud services and other online technologies—have become increasingly contentious across the U.S. as communities weigh potential economic benefits with concerns about electricity and water consumption, noise, and emissions.
Kansas was no exception. In the run-up to the midterms, data center development emerged as a particularly contentious issue in the governor's race. Newsweek's post-midterm analysis found that lawmakers who had most strongly supported accelerating data center development were the most likely to lose their reelection bids.
In 2025, both Holscher and Masterson initially backed legislation providing incentives for data center development, but Holscher later changed course and called for a statewide pause on new projects.
"We should take on projects that create jobs and stimulate the economy, and as governor I will work to bring these projects to Kansas," she said in June. "But we cannot afford to do that at the expense of our people, the health of our communities and under threat to our farmers' water supply."
While Holscher's campaign continued to back a statewide moratorium on new data center projects, Masterson took a different stance, sticking with the original backing of incentives for data center development while pledging to support legislation that would protect communities.
The Republican candidate said in June, "President Trump set the standard: win the AI race, but not at the cost of working families."
Pro-Data Center Group Backs Masterson
Building the Future, a pro-data center super PAC, spent a reported $1.5 million to back the GOP candidate.
The group is an offshoot of Leading the Future, a pro-AI super political action committee network that supports policies aimed at encouraging the development of artificial intelligence. Newsweek has contacted Building the Future for comment via email.
The Kansas spending formed part of the group's wider midterm push. Building the Future also spent about $1.5 million in advertising in South Carolina to boost Republican Senator Darline Graham, who lost to Democrat Annie Andrews.
When Building the Future launched in August, the group said it would back candidates who supported "responsible policies that strengthen and protect communities, preserve water resources, and prevent rate hikes on electricity bills," while also supporting U.S. leadership in AI and the creation of jobs.
During his campaign, Masterson pledged to pass laws formalizing existing safeguards in statute, including a requirement that data center developers sign long-term power purchase agreements and pay large-load energy tariffs to minimize the impact on communities.
In October, Holscher seized on the opportunity to call out her opponent for his stance on data centers, describing Masterson as a "stooge for big tech" and suggesting that he wanted to "put a data center on every corner and in every cornfield."
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Did Data Centers Influence the Result?
There is no direct evidence that Holscher's narrow victory was driven by the data center issue, but it had become a prominent dividing line in the campaign, and some voters said the candidates' positions would influence their decision.
One resident told local station KSHB in August that data centers "may as well be the defining moment of the November election; it is for me."
On Thursday, Holscher celebrated her win by writing on social media: "Thank you, Kansas! It's the honor of a lifetime to serve as your next Governor."
Masterson, meanwhile, said in a statement: "To the hundreds of thousands of Kansans who voted for me, thank you. It looks like we will come up just short, but the things we fought for are no less important today than they were yesterday." He added, "This was a hard election for people who share our vision, here and across the country."
Since the midterms, a number of local governments have moved to pause developments or tighten regulations surrounding data centers, including in Oklahoma, Tennessee, Idaho and Iowa.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Tobias Meyjes and Shakeema Edwards.
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