2026 midterm races put data centers, AI and Musk’s donations in focus

2026 midterm races put data centers, AI and Musk’s donations in focus

2 min read•Nov 5, 2026•
David Kim
David Kim

Several 2026 midterm contests, first reported by Businessinsider, put data-center development, AI proposals and Elon Musk’s donations in focus. Musk has donated at least $158 million, which has been routed to a pro-Paxton super PAC; California voters also face a proposed one-time 5% tax on Californians with more than $1 billion in wealth.

The Texas Senate contest pairs Republican Ken Paxton with Democrat James Talarico. President Donald Trump’s endorsement pushed Paxton past Sen. John Cornyn after a bitter primary and runoff, and Musk has frequently criticized Talarico on X. Record donations are powering a last-minute effort to save the seat and perhaps the GOP majority. Cook Political Report rates the contest a Toss-Up.

Elsewhere, former Sen. Sherrod Brown has criticized Sen. Jon Husted’s past support for data-center development. Husted says the issue should be left to communities and no longer supports offering tax incentives for new data-center construction. Cook Political Report rates the contest a Toss-Up.

In Michigan’s Senate race, Democrat Abdul El-Sayed has called for government equity stakes in AI companies and for tech giants such as Microsoft to divest from OpenAI and Anthropic. Republican Mike Rogers has called for a pause on data-center development in the state, and Cook Political Report rates the contest Lean Democrat. Together, the positions put community decisions and development pauses for data centers beside proposals for government stakes and divestment in AI companies.

California’s ballot fight is distinct from the candidate contests: two competing proposals would effectively nullify the proposed tax. A recent UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies-Los Angeles Times survey found opponents had a 50% to 42% edge among likely voters. Public polling this fall has been sparse and varied.

California has a lot of votes to count, and historically some races have taken days or even weeks to call. Three intertwined initiatives could make it harder for news organizations to project a winner. If multiple initiatives pass, the one with the most affirmative votes generally trumps conflicting ones.

Plug-in vehicles reach 32% of global registrations in September

Plug-in vehicles reached 32% of global registrations in September, first reported by Cleantechnica. Battery-electric vehicles accounted for 23% of registrations and set a record at 1.54 million, up 8% year over year, while plug-in hybrids fell 9%; year to date in 2026, BEVs were up 12% and PHEVs down 10%.

Global plug-in registrations rose 3% year over year to around 2.16 million in September, close to the all-time record of 2.17 million set last December.

Year to date, plug-in registrations were up 4% year over year: BEVs grew 12%, while PHEVs fell 10%. Their combined share for 2026 stood at 25%, with BEVs at 18% and PHEVs at 7%. The overall growth rate therefore hides a clear split between the two categories.

The Tesla Model Y led the model rankings with a record 165,000 registrations, up 17% year over year. Tesla Model 3 came second with 65,000, enough to move ahead of Geely Xingyuan and BYD Song despite a 4% annual decline.

BYD Song finished fourth at 54,519 registrations, up 19% and the fastest growth rate among the top five. An export push and the new-generation Ultra body helped lift the model.

At the make level, Tesla had a record 232,000 registrations, up 9% year over year. Toyota reached 61,332 for its fourth record in a row, finishing ahead of Volkswagen’s year-best 58,000 to become September’s best-selling legacy make.