How the Wisconsin governor’s race became a data center hate-off

Protesters gather for a statewide data center day of action at the Wisconsin State Capitol on February 12, 2026, in Madison, Wisconsin. | Wisconsin Watch via Getty Images The general election for Wisconsin governor is now a week old. But the past seven days of debate between the race’s Republican and Democratic candidates can be paraphrased in just two lines: “My opponent is a shill for Big Tech who wants to build data centers over Wisconinites’ farms, parks, preserves, graves — and,…