Governor · Ohio
Side-by-side comparison of candidate stances on AI hyperscale data center moratoriums, electricity rate hikes, water depletion, and Super PAC funding.
Candidate Position
- Formally announced support for a statewide “conditional moratorium” on July 27, 2026 (Acton Campaign Release / State News / Cleveland.com), followed by an emergency call on September 23 for the Statehouse to pass moratorium legislation (Acton for Governor).
- Focuses on Central Ohio’s dense tech corridor (New Albany/Columbus metro), warning that “data centers are moving into Ohio's communities in secrecy, raising costs and undermining our core values” (Acton Issue Platform), while demanding transparency on water depletion and guarantees that working families won't subsidize corporate utility bills.
- Focuses broader AI concerns on algorithmic bias in healthcare denials, patient privacy, and chemical coolant emissions.
- Rejects tech PAC money ($0 outside support); confirmed to WCPO that she has liquidated all individual stocks, while publicly calling on opponent Vivek Ramaswamy to divest his data-center holdings.
Sources & Verified Statements
“Data centers are moving into Ohio's communities in secrecy, raising costs and undermining our core values... I support a conditional moratorium on data centers...”
“I welcome innovation in Ohio, but any new data centers must be transparent about water usage and guarantee that working families won't see their utility bills spike to subsidize corporate energy demands.”
Candidate Position
- Running on an aggressive compute-expansion platform to make Ohio the “AI capital of the Midwest,” backing small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs), fracking public lands, and opposing any municipal or state moratoriums (NBC4 Columbus / Ohio Capital Journal).
- Pivoted from early promises of free industrial electricity after ratepayer blowback, telling WCPO: “If you are going to use electricity from the electric grid, you should have to pay for it and bring your own energy.”
- Supported by a historic $10,000,000 independent expenditure from the Victors, Not Victims PAC—bankrolled by $5,000,000 from xAI founder Elon Musk and $5,000,000 from cloud billionaire Ratmir Timashev (Hoodline).
- Documented personal holdings in tech and data-center companies (TiffinOhio.net); stated to the Journal News and WCPO that he will divest all data-center-connected stock if elected governor.
Sources & Verified Statements
“I am against you and the people of this state having to pay for them. If you are going to use electricity from the electric grid, you should have to pay for it and bring your own energy.”
“We've got AI data centers moving to our state. That's a good thing.”
“Ohio needs to build more power generation—including nuclear and natural gas—so we can power the AI revolution right here in the heartland without driving up electric bills for everyday Ohioans.”