Governor of Florida
Side-by-side comparison of candidate stances on AI hyperscale data center moratoriums, electricity rate hikes, water depletion, and Super PAC funding.
Candidate Position
- Evolved from an enthusiastic booster touting Florida's “pristine land available to use” (Local10) into a cautious local-control advocate as public backlash over rising electric bills intensified.
- Retreated to a municipal-deference stance, stating that “county commissioners issue building permits, not governors” (ftw.usatoday), while warning developers that “if you don't protect our ratepayers and you don't protect our water, you are not building a data center” (Local10).
- Under scrutiny from Mother Jones, which revealed his personal stock portfolio includes AI-industry holdings, alongside reports from Florida Bulldog detailing disclosure inaccuracies.
- Backed by $3,000,000 in outside television ad spending from American Mission Florida, funded via OpenAI-aligned Leading the Future donor networks (WUSF).
Sources & Verified Statements
“That's a signal to the business community that this is not a place to invest capital. This is not a place to invest in businesses... utility rates in our state will not go up for ratepayers, and we require water permits for these centers so that we protect Florida's aquifers.”
“County commissioners issue building permits, not governors.”
“To the people who might want to build them, if you don't protect our ratepayers and you don't protect our water, you are not building a data center, and that is my position.”
Candidate Position
- Has pledged to sign an executive order on his very first day in office as governor imposing an immediate one-year statewide moratorium on data center construction (ftw.usatoday / WPTV), with potential for a permanent ban (DavidJolly.com).
- Warns that Florida is blindly copying Northern Virginia’s mistakes, pointing to “exceedingly real noise pollution, destabilization of communities, devaluation of real estate, and visual symbols of greater anxieties about AI and the loss of jobs” (FOX 13).
- Actively campaigns in Orlando blasting opponent Byron Donalds over tech ties (Orlando Sentinel) and demands a total ban on local economic development agencies signing secrecy NDAs with Big Tech developers.
- Rejects AI super PAC funding; campaign is financed without tech industry PAC support.
Sources & Verified Statements
“There are still questions around public health. The noise pollution is exceedingly real. The destabilization of communities, the devaluation of real estate. And I think it also becomes a visual symbol of the greater anxieties about artificial intelligence, the loss of jobs, the disruption of wages.”
“I've proposed a one-year moratorium... My first day in office as governor, I will issue that moratorium.”
“Florida's voters are saying, don't do this. And I've said, I'll issue a moratorium on my very first day in office... Big tech and big data are rushing into a relatively unregulated environment.”