Texas Senate Race to Decide Data Center Voice
Rodriguez's County Voice Act would bring local communities into hyperscale data center decisions, a proposal not yet law.
Updated on Nov. 2, 2026 in Data Centers
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Should communities have a formal vote before hyperscale data centers are approved locally?
Democratic candidate Riley Rodriguez is making a final campaign push to unseat incumbent Republican Charles Perry in Texas Senate District 28 ahead of Election Day on Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Rodriguez has proposed a County Voice Act, a policy that is announced rather than enacted.
Why it matters
The race centers on how hyperscale data center projects are approved, a question that is moving from local planning boards into state-level policy. Rodriguez argues these projects require large infrastructure investments, so communities should have a say before decisions are made by state lawmakers.
The County Voice Act would reuse the process counties already use to set a property tax rate, applied to hyperscale data centers. The proposal is a campaign platform item, and the source does not give figures on its projected reach or cost.
The players
Riley Rodriguez
Democratic candidate for Texas Senate District 28, a Abilene native who proposes the County Voice Act and rural health and education measures.
Charles Perry
Incumbent state senator representing Texas Senate District 28, the seat Rodriguez is contesting in the November 2026 election.
The details
Counties in Texas set tax rates through a defined public procedure, and the County Voice Act would apply that same procedure to hyperscale data centers. Hyperscale data centers are very large facilities housing thousands of servers that power cloud computing and AI workloads. Rodriguez says the goal is to give local communities a stronger voice in decisions that currently sit with state lawmakers. The proposal is described as a campaign platform rather than a law already in force.
Timeline
Tuesday, November 3, 2026: Election Day for the Texas Senate District 28 race.
Final campaign push takes place in the days leading up to Election Day.
The Tech Race
The proposal positions local input as a counterweight to state-level decisions on large data center buildouts, a dynamic the source does not tie to any named competing state effort. The source does not identify a specific competing research program or product roadmap for comparison.
If elected, Rodriguez would have a say in state policy on data centers, and residents of the district would see a possible local role in such decisions. The source gives no timeline for when, or whether, the County Voice Act would take effect.
The takeaway
Watch the outcome of Texas Senate District 28 on November 3, 2026, as it will show whether voters back a bigger local role in hyperscale data center approvals. Track whether the County Voice Act is filed as legislation after the election.
What happens next
Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026, when voters in Texas Senate District 28 decide the race between Rodriguez and Perry.
Further reading
For the broader policy context, see our Data Centers coverage across the state.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Texomashomepage.com - KFDX, KJTL.
Live Poll
Should communities have a formal vote before hyperscale data centers are approved locally?
