The column below reflects the views of the author, and these opinions are neither endorsed nor supported by WisOpinion.com.

MADISON, Wis. – Once upon a time, major political candidates were fearful of television ads or mass mailers in which they were accused of favoritism, bribes and other old-fashioned scandals or corruption.

This election year, among the highest crimes alleged on the campaign trail is being a supporter of building data centers.

Independent attack ads backing Democratic candidate for governor David Crowley proclaim that Republican opponent Tom Tiffany “stands with big-tech billionaires, not with us” because he took pro-data center and artificial intelligence votes in Congress.

Third-party ads supporting U.S. Rep. Tiffany label Crowley as “Data Center David” and claim AI infrastructure hubs “guzzle millions of gallons of water per day” while driving up electric bills and ravaging farmland.

Demonizing candidates for keeping an open mind about data centers is a bipartisan pattern in other Wisconsin election campaigns, as well, mainly because the people behind dark-money ads can read polls that show data centers to be unpopular.

Leaving aside the fact that Silicon Valley has done a miserable job of explaining how data centers work while sometimes trying to ram them down the throats of unprepared local governments, here’s why claims about water, electricity and farmland use are overblown – if not outright wrong.

  • Newer data centers are quickly moving to “closed-loop” cooling systems. Such systems absorb heat from computer servers and transfer it through heat exchangers without exposing fluid (often a water and glycol mix) to the open air. That greatly reduces evaporation loss. Closed-loop processes can reduce water use to roughly what it takes to keep a single golf course nourished during the summer. Wisconsin manufacturers are among those who build such systems, which means next-generation data centers may help keep related businesses and jobs close to home.
  • Concerns about data center electricity costs spilling over into the bills of other industrial, commercial and residential customers run counter to the facts in Wisconsin. Early in October, American Transmission Co. posted its projected 2027 “transmission revenue requirement” with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. It projected a 6% decrease in network rates, even if FERC approves pending filings related to new electric loads. That’s important because ATC is a state-based company that builds and maintains a common electric “grid” for much of Wisconsin and three other Midwest states. In addition, the state Public Service Commission has a history of not endorsing electricity “cost-shifting” from big projects to other users.
  • Possible sites for data centers may depend on a mix of factors, but old industrial sites can make for strong locations because they’re often already served by the electric grid, water lines, roads and other infrastructure. Plus, if those former paper mills or factories need environmental clean-up, data center owners have deep enough pockets to pay for it. Farmland can be a different question. Data centers are big, often unsightly and can alter how neighbors view their slice of heaven. On the flip side, Wisconsin is home to 13.7 million acres of farmland – only 6.3 million of which is categorized as “prime.” Wisconsin farmers struggle enough to turn a profit; should political candidates deride those who sell land that may not be in production?

Most voters recognize attack ads for what they are: Attempts to “go negative” on a political candidate for the purpose of swaying votes or at least tamping down turnout on election day. Such commercials or mailers are not renowned for being factual, beyond whatever their dark-money sponsors see as minimally necessary to seed doubt in the minds of voters.

As their Oct. 21 debate in Milwaukee revealed, either Crowley or Tiffany would take a cautious approach to regulating data centers. It would involve transparency on the part of developers, rational tax incentives, if any, and helping local governments and citizens react knowledgeably if there’s a proposal to build one.

Of course, all that is too complex to fit into a 30-second ad.

Still is past president of the Wisconsin Technology Council. He is an adviser to Competitive Wisconsin Inc., a non-profit public policy group.