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CNBC Interviews Texas Trump Voter Frustrated With GOP Over Data Centers

A possible project near one voter’s home shows the political pressure behind Abbott’s permit halt. A statewide poll shows broad opposition, but not how people will vote.

By 3 min read
CNBC Interviews Texas Trump Voter Frustrated With GOP Over Data Centers
CNBC Interviews Texas Trump Voter Frustrated With GOP Over Data Centers

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Survey markers near Mason McCallister’s home in Bells, Texas, led him to ask who was planning to use the land. He says Black Mountain’s chief executive later confirmed the company was exploring a data center nearby. The project is still only under exploration, and Black Mountain did not respond to CNBC’s request for comment. McCallister, a lifelong Republican and three-time Trump voter, says the experience has made him question his political alignment. His main concerns are water and power use. He says Republicans were too slow to respond, but he has not said how he’ll vote. The dispute is unfolding as Governor Greg Abbott halts data-center-related environmental permits while the state audits its waitlist. The pause applies even to projects that aren’t seeking a grid connection. Abbott says he wants data centers to pay their own way and protect Texas water and power. An August poll by the University of Texas and the Texas Politics Project found 57 percent of registered voters opposed a data center in their community; 30 percent supported one. Republicans were nearly split, while 60 percent of rural voters opposed local construction. The survey asked about local projects, not whether they would change anyone’s vote. It also showed Abbott narrowly leading Gina Hinojosa, while James Talarico narrowly led Ken Paxton—but those numbers don’t establish that data centers are driving either race. Abbott has proposed repealing the state tax break, but that’s not law, and the legislature won’t meet again until 2027. That timing is the clearest constraint on what happens next.

Story brief

3 key points

Texas’s data-center backlash is moving from local complaints into state permitting and campaign politics. Lifelong Republican Mason McCallister says a possible Black Mountain project near Bells—still only under exploration—has made him question his political alignment after he struggled to get answers; he has not said how he’ll vote. Gov. Greg Abbott has paused environmental permits while auditing the waitlist,...

  1. 01

    The August poll surveyed 1,200 registered voters: 57% opposed local construction, 30% supported it, with a 3.58-point margin of error.

  2. 02

    Republicans were nearly split: 45% supported a local data center; 60% of rural voters opposed one.

  3. 03

    Abbott’s permit halt also covers projects not seeking grid connections; repeal of the state tax break is only a proposal, with lawmakers not meeting until 2027.

Survey markers near Mason McCallister’s Texas home set him searching for answers about a possible data center. In a new CNBC interview, the lifelong Republican and three-time Trump voter says the experience has left him questioning his political leanings. His frustration with the GOP comes as Governor Greg Abbott halts data-center permits and the issue enters Texas’s governor and Senate races.

A possible project near Bells

McCallister spotted the markers last December near his home in Bells and began asking who planned to use the land. He told CNBC that Black Mountain’s chief executive later confirmed the company was exploring a data center nearby. Black Mountain did not respond to CNBC’s requests for comment about the possible project.

His chief concerns are water and power use. Other Texas opponents interviewed by CNBC raised noise and light pollution. Residents protesting proposed projects more broadly have also cited utility costs and property values. For McCallister, the dispute has become political: he says Republicans were too slow to respond, though he has not said how he will vote.

Opposed to a data center in their community
57%Texas registered voters

A majority opposed local construction in the August University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll.

43%Republicans

Republicans were closely divided: 45% supported a data center in their community.

60%Rural voters

Three in five rural voters opposed local construction.

Opposition reaches beyond one voter

In that August poll, 30% of registered voters supported a data center in their community; 54% of independents opposed one. The survey asked about local construction, not whether the issue would change anyone’s vote. It covered 1,200 registered voters and reported a margin of error of 3.58 percentage points after accounting for weighting.

The same survey put Abbott ahead of Democrat Gina Hinojosa, 45% to 40%, in the governor’s race. In the Senate contest, Democrat James Talarico led Republican Ken Paxton, 42% to 39%—a narrow margin given the poll’s stated error range. The candidate figures and data-center views show the political setting, not that opposition is driving either race.

From grid review to permit halt

Abbott’s response has moved beyond grid connections. In August, he directed regulators to audit proposed data centers seeking access to Texas’s power grid before allowing them to proceed. This week, he ordered the state environmental regulator to halt data-center-related permits while the existing waitlist is audited. The halt also covers projects that are not seeking grid connections.

Abbott’s campaign says the governor wants data centers to pay their own way and protect Texas water and power. President Donald Trump has urged communities to welcome the facilities, arguing they bring jobs and lower taxes. Abbott has also suggested repealing the state’s data-center tax break. That is a proposal, not a repeal: the legislature will not meet again until 2027.

Sources

  1. texaspolitics.utexas.eduNew UT/Texas Politics Project Poll Finds Talarico Leading Paxton, Abbott Leading Hinojosa, Continued Resistance to Data Centers
  2. cnbc.comTexas turning blue may hinge on Democrats harnessing data center opposition

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