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By Ben Chu

Policy and analysis correspondent

A US midterms voter poll has suggested data centres were a highly motivating issue for many Americans, leading some to argue public backlash against the artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure construction boom might have helped shape the election outcome.

BBC Verify has looked at its role in the campaign and examined the potential consequences for the AI industry.

What did the voter poll suggest?

The poll for AP and a consortium of news organisations found 56% of surveyed voters said data centres were a "crucial or major" factor in their vote, while 76% said they would oppose the construction of a new data centre in their community.

The hostile sentiment was considerably stronger among those who said they voted Democrat at this election.

This follows other recent Pew Research polling , external which suggested about half of Americans think data centres are "mostly bad" for the environment, home energy costs and quality of…