Maine Student Says Data Center Protest Was Part of Political Internship

A Maine student's account of disrupting a Senate debate over AI data centers tied the protest to a political internship and an effort to reach undecided voters before Election Day.

Henry Elgie, a Bowdoin College student, said in an Oct. 30 interview that his Sunrise Movement internship was intended for students in states with close contests. He said he chose data centers because he thought the issue could appeal across party lines and resonate with undecided voters. “It was important to target an issue that is bipartisan,” Elgie said.

At the Oct. 15 debate in Bangor, Elgie shouted, “AI data centers are destroying our climate. They are poisoning our water.” Sen. Susan Collins responded, “So this is obviously one of Troy’s supporters.” Democrat Troy Jackson said he did not know Elgie.

A poll fielded Aug. 28-Sept. 14 among 650 likely Maine voters found that 76% opposed an AI data center in their community, including 58% who strongly opposed one. The adjusted margin of error was 4.66 percentage points. Fifty-five percent supported a statewide ban on data center construction or expansion.

A separate Senate matchup question put Jackson at 48% and Collins at 43%, with 6% undecided. The poll reported the two questions separately; the results do not establish that data center views will determine the Senate race.

The debate over data center development has also included questions about electricity costs and community effects. Earlier coverage examined how data center costs have entered midterm campaigns.

Maine lawmakers passed LD 307, which would have barred municipalities and state entities from accepting applications or granting approvals before Nov. 1, 2027, for data centers with power loads of 20 megawatts or more. Gov. Janet Mills vetoed the bill April 24. She said she would have signed it with an exemption for a project at the former Androscoggin Mill in Jay. Lawmakers sustained the veto April 29, leaving the proposed restrictions unenacted.

Maine’s Senate election is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 3.