As Meta builds a $1 billion data center campus near Beaver Dam, fifth-grade teacher Maily Kocinski says she is worried about possible effects on her water and land — and unsure which local officials can address her concerns. The project has also complicated her decision in Wisconsin’s Nov. 3 governor’s race. Kocinski lives in the town of Trenton, but the property for Meta’s project was annexed by Beaver Dam in 2019. She says she is not represented by the city officials overseeing the development, while her town board lacks jurisdiction over it. “I’m in a representative void,” Kocinski said. Her experience reflects a growing political challenge as Wisconsin attracts large data center proposals, including facilities under construction in Port Washington and Mount Pleasant and proposed projects in communities such as DeForest, Janesville and Wisconsin Rapids. These server campuses, many intended to support artificial intelligence, have raised questions about electricity and water use, farmland, utility bills and who gets to make decisions about development. A September Marquette University Law School poll found 74% of respondents believed the costs of data centers outweighed their potential benefits, compared with 55% in October 2025. The view crossed party lines: 90% of Democrats, 83% of independents and 57% of Republicans said costs were greater than benefits. Yet the two leading candidates for governor, Democrat David Crowley and Republican Tom Tiffany, have stopped short of backing a statewide moratorium. Both support local governments having a say, oppose nondisclosure agreements between public officials and developers, and say they want to protect utility customers and the environment. They differ on state tax breaks. Tiffany says he would end subsidies created in the 2023-25 state budget, which exempted data center equipment from sales and use taxes. Crowley would reduce, but not eliminate, them. The Legislative Fiscal Bureau estimates the exemptions could cost the state about $1.5 billion in forgone revenue over five years. Crowley has called for data centers to run on 100% renewable energy and says projects should use union labor. Tiffany has criticized that renewable-energy requirement and says he would protect farmland. Both campaigns declined interview requests and issued statements instead. For Kocinski, neither candidate’s position is enough. She said she cannot support Tiffany, but is not confident Crowley would protect her family. She supported state Rep. Francesca Hong in the Democratic primary; Hong backed a statewide pause on new data centers until regulations are in place. The dispute is drawing increased attention from organized interests. At least 20 groups registered to lobby on data centers during the current legislative session, compared with none registered on the issue five years earlier. Groups on both sides have also become active in the campaign: data center-related advertising spending reached at least $6.8 million by early September, according to a WisPolitics report. Supporters say the facilities can generate construction and manufacturing work, expand local tax bases and help pay for public services. Meta’s Beaver Dam project is estimated to add about $600 million to the community’s tax base once operational. Rob Marchant, a lobbyist for the Wisconsin Data Center Coalition, said development could bring substantial benefits to some communities, while acknowledging that residents need to weigh the trade-offs. Opponents, including the newly formed Build Wisconsin Better, are seeking tighter rules. Some residents and candidates have called for a statewide moratorium, while many lawmakers say communities should retain local control. State Rep. David Steffen, a Republican who chairs the Assembly’s energy and utilities committee, predicts the Legislature will adopt regulations early in its next session, which begins in January. The issue is not the top concern for most voters: 5% of respondents in the September Marquette poll named data centers as their most important issue, behind concerns such as inflation, immigration, health insurance and property taxes. But data center debates touch several of those concerns, including energy costs, environmental protection and the future of rural land. Brian Reisinger, a public affairs strategist and former Republican campaign adviser, said candidates are balancing the prospect of economic investment against rising public frustration. For people living near proposed sites, however, questions of representation and accountability are already immediate.