The head of DBS Group Holdings, Southeast Asia’s largest bank, warned on Thursday that equity markets will likely stay volatile following the US midterm elections, in which the opposition Democratic Party won control of both the Senate and the House, according to Nikkei Asia. Separately, The Hankyoreh reported that a wave of Democratic wins tied to anti-AI-regulation platforms, combined with local ballot measures against data centers, is raising doubts about the pace of AI infrastructure buildout across the United States.
- DBS Group Holdings, described as Southeast Asia's largest bank, warned of continued equity market volatility after Democrats took the US Senate and House, according to Nikkei Asia.
- CNBC reported that 41 local ballot measures on data centers were held across 10 states alongside the November 3 midterms, per The Hankyoreh.
- Of those 41 measures, 40 favored limiting or regulating data center construction; Ohio alone held 21 of them, Hankyoreh reported.
- OpenAI said in August it planned the world's largest AI data center on a former federal site in Pike County, Ohio, with phase one construction due to start this year.
- Democratic winners including Sherrod Brown in Ohio, Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan, and Gina Hinojosa and James Talarico in Texas campaigned on tighter data center oversight, according to Hankyoreh.
What happened
Nikkei Asia reported that DBS flagged continued market uncertainty after Democrats flipped both chambers of Congress. Around the same time, The Hankyoreh, citing CNBC, reported that 41 local ballot measures concerning data centers were held across 10 states on the same day as the midterms. Of these, 28 sought to limit or regulate data center construction, while 13 aimed to attract such facilities through zoning changes or tax incentives. According to the report, 40 of the 41 measures ended up favoring restriction or regulation.
Ohio accounted for more than half of these votes, with 21 of the 41 measures held there, reflecting what Hankyoreh described as souring public sentiment over data centers in the state. OpenAI had announced in August that it planned to build what it called the world’s largest AI data center on a former federal site in Pike County, Ohio, with the first phase of construction expected to begin this year. Hankyoreh noted that the project’s outlook became less certain after Democrats won both the Ohio Senate seat and the governorship.
Why it matters
Ohio senator-elect Sherrod Brown had attacked his Republican opponent during the campaign, calling him the “face of data centers,” according to Hankyoreh, accusing him of granting large tax breaks to data center operators while electricity bills for residents soared. Several other winning Democrats ran on similar platforms: Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed campaigned on temporarily halting AI development until new safeguards are established, while Texas governor-elect Gina Hinojosa pledged to immediately pause data center construction until stronger resident protections are in place. Texas senator-elect James Talarico said he would end tax breaks for AI developers and require them to help cover energy infrastructure costs.
Our read: these results suggest that AI infrastructure expansion, which had faced little political resistance, could now encounter more friction at both the state and federal level, adding a new layer of uncertainty for companies planning large-scale data center investments.
Background
According to Hankyoreh, the ruling party had been reluctant to regulate AI during the past two years, citing competition with China, even as voters dealt with rising electricity and water costs and noise linked to rapidly expanding data centers. The report said this frustration contributed to the backlash seen in the midterms. It also noted that AI industry figures, including SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, had donated heavily to Republican candidates seen as friendly to the industry, but this spending did not prevent the wave of Democratic wins tied to regulatory platforms.
Brookings Institution senior fellow Darrell West told The New York Times, as cited by Hankyoreh, that he expects new rules and oversight to arrive “like a tsunami.” This suggests analysts anticipate a notable shift in the regulatory environment facing AI developers in the coming period.
What to watch
Observers will likely track whether newly elected Democratic officials in Ohio, Michigan and Texas follow through on campaign pledges to restrict or tax data center construction, and how this affects projects such as OpenAI’s planned Pike County facility. Market watchers may also continue to monitor DBS’s volatility warning as a signal of how investors are pricing in political risk tied to AI policy. This suggests that both regulatory decisions and investor sentiment will remain closely linked in the months ahead.
Frequently asked questions
Why are markets reacting to the US midterm results?
DBS Group Holdings' chief warned of continued equity market volatility after Democrats took control of the Senate and House, according to Nikkei Asia, as investors weigh political uncertainty.
What happened with the local data center votes?
Alongside the midterms, 41 ballot measures on data centers were held in 10 states, and 40 of them favored restricting or regulating construction, per CNBC as reported by The Hankyoreh.
Could this affect OpenAI's Ohio project?
OpenAI's planned data center in Pike County, Ohio faces a less certain outlook after Democrats won both the state's Senate and governor's races, according to Hankyoreh.
Sources
- Nikkei Asia: DBS chief warns of 'choppy' equity markets after US midterms
- The Hankyoreh: 미 민주 승리·주민투표 규제 찬성에…AI 데이터센터 건설 타격 전망
This article was prepared with AI assistance from the reports listed above and automatically checked against them. See About for how we work.