Left-wing activists in the United States have made a surprising surge in Democratic primary elections across the Midwest, capitalizing on voters' anger toward AI infrastructure. In Wisconsin, progressive socialist Francesca Hong has surged ahead of her opponent by 22 points in the Democratic gubernatorial primary, thanks to her pioneering campaign promise to "pause new data center construction." She has effectively tapped into widespread public discontent over AI infrastructure—particularly energy-hungry data centers—calling for a halt to further development and criticizing the state government for forfeiting approximately $2 billion in tax exemptions as a result. Meanwhile, other progressive candidates such as Abdul El-Sayed and Will Lawrence in Michigan are also gaining momentum with similar stances in their respective primaries. The Democratic establishment is now anxious and scrambling to find candidates capable of countering this leftward wave. Hong’s opponents have labeled her position as overly extreme, arguing that more moderate regulatory legislation would be a pragmatic alternative. However, polling shows that 88% of Democratic voters believe the downsides of data centers outweigh their benefits, making Hong’s early advantage on the issue difficult to overcome. In Michigan, a similar tide of voter frustration is pushing progressive candidates to propose restrictions even stricter than those currently held by the governor, while traditional moderates attempt to strike a balance between protecting constituents’ interests and avoiding a complete halt to industry development—though their response has been notably delayed.
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Original article: toutiao.com/article/1872306994178394/
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