Ken Paxton’s U.S. Senate campaign has pulled in nearly $450,000 in data center donations
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's U.S. Senate campaign has received nearly $450,000 in donations from the data center industry, despite rising bipartisan opposition to data center development in the state. While Paxton has remained publicly neutral on the issue, his Democratic opponent, James Talarico, advocates for increased regulation and repealing data center sales-tax exemptions. Hood County also inquired about its authority to temporarily block data center development, to which Paxton has not yet responded.
Republican Ken Paxton's U.S. Senate campaign has garnered nearly $450,000 in donations from the data center industry through June, according to a NOTUS investigation of Federal Election Commission reports. Paxton, who serves as Texas' Attorney General, has adopted a non-committal stance on data center development, describing the issue as "complicated" in a May podcast appearance. He suggested balancing Texas' competitiveness with China in the AI boom against the quality of life for residents.
This financial backing for Paxton's campaign coincides with rising bipartisan opposition to the proliferation of data centers in Texas. A June poll by the University of Texas' nonpartisan Texas Politics Project indicates that a majority of Texans oppose data center development, which has surged due to state tax incentives, a reliable grid, and less stringent regulations. Hood County previously sought an opinion from Paxton's office on its authority to temporarily halt data center construction, a request to which he has not yet responded.
In contrast to Paxton's ambiguity, his Democratic opponent, State Representative James Talarico, advocates for stricter regulation of the data center industry. Talarico proposes measures such as repealing Texas' sales-tax exemption for data centers. Despite the significant data center donations, Paxton's campaign war chest of $9.3 million, with $1.8 million cash on hand, trails Talarico's $21.5 million in cash on hand as of June 30.