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Florida voters abandon Byron Donalds over data-center ties

8/17/2026

50 3 Full Breakdown

Summary

Story summary

Florida voters are abandoning Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) after he backed data centers and received millions from developers.
Republican Slowey will vote Tuesday for Lt. Gov. Jay Collins, who promises strict guardrails on data centers.
Citrus County commissioners rejected Deltona’s 800-acre data center plan and imposed a one-year moratorium.
Crestview City Council voted 4-0 to task the manager with drafting a possible data center ban.

History

Historical Context

Google’s 2010 $600 million Lenoir, North Carolina data center, backed by $30 million in state tax incentives, provoked local backlash. Since then, incentives have spread—by 2024, 36 states offer data-center tax breaks and a Journal of Economic Perspectives review says such subsidies have tripled to $30 billion per year, yet research shows they sway firm locations in only 2-25% of cases. Florida’s current subsidy fights mirror this pattern.

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Story summary

Florida voters are abandoning Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) after he backed data centers and received millions from developers.
Republican Slowey will vote Tuesday for Lt. Gov. Jay Collins, who promises strict guardrails on data centers.
Citrus County commissioners rejected Deltona’s 800-acre data center plan and imposed a one-year moratorium.
Crestview City Council voted 4-0 to task the manager with drafting a possible data center ban.

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