These races matter if you care about money, Musk, and the AI boom as Democrats rack up shocking wins

Brown’s return and data centers

The Associated Press projected that former Sen. Sherrod Brown would defeat Sen. Jon Husted and return to Congress. Husted, a former lieutenant governor, was seeking to retain the Senate seat once held by former Vice President JD Vance.

Brown criticized Husted’s past backing for data center development. Husted has said communities should decide the issue and no longer supports tax incentives for new data center construction. Senate Republicans’ campaign arm warned AI labs that a Husted defeat blamed on data centers could make politicians wary of future projects.

Michigan’s competing proposals

The Michigan Senate race is described as especially dramatic. Rep. Haley Stevens, who lost a contentious primary to El-Sayed, endorsed Republican hopeful Rogers shortly before the election. In a southern Michigan district centered on Lansing, Rep. Barrett is seeking reelection. William Lawrence, a Sunrise Movement cofounder, has linked Barrett to a proposed $1 billion hyperscale data center near Mason. Barrett supports local decision-making, while Lawrence backs a moratorium.

Ohio and Wisconsin contests

Republicans seeking to retain their majority are also focused on Rep. Marcy Kaptur, a 22-term Democrat whose northwestern Ohio district runs from the Indiana border to just west of Cleveland. Kaptur has criticized Republican Merrin for supporting data center tax incentives. Merrin says she is misrepresenting his record; Ohio lawmakers extended the eligibility deadline for some data centers under a 2017 budget law.

In western Wisconsin, Republican Rep. Van Orden is defending a district that includes Eau Claire and La Crosse. His challenger, former political consultant and waitress Cooke, supports a federal pause on data center development and has criticized Van Orden over the issue. Van Orden has accused her of being too close to technology groups.

Trump carried the Wisconsin district by more than 7 points in 2024, according to The Downballot’s estimates. Van Orden beat Cooke by about 3 points.

California wealth tax fight

A proposed California wealth tax is another major ballot question. The Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West proposed the measure, which has support from Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna and Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Gov. Gavin Newsom opposes the proposal, as do several prominent Silicon Valley figures, including Google cofounder Sergey Brin. Public polling this fall has been limited and inconsistent. A UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies-Los Angeles Times survey found opponents ahead, 50% to 42%, among likely voters.