Texas data center industry faces uncertainty after Hinojosa wins governor's race

Texas' data center industry faces uncertainty after governor-elect Gina Hinojosa's victory, as she pledged to crack down on server warehouse growth with a statewide moratorium and vowed to "stop the data center takeover." Hinojosa, who defeated Republican Greg Abbott, plans to ban all data center approvals until the legislature passes laws protecting Texans. Abbott had already halted new data center grid connections in August, ordered audits, and penalized water violations, throwing billions in projects into jeopardy. Texas has become a top data center hub due to cheap land and energy, with Meta, Google, and Microsoft investing heavily. Polls show strong voter support for limits, with 79% of likely Texas voters backing restrictions and 76% nationwide opposing new local data centers.