How AI Data Centers Should Shape Your 2026 U.S. House Vote in Bensalem, Pennsylvania

What the AI Data Center Debate Means for Bensalem

If you live in Bensalem, you're in Pennsylvania's 1st Congressional District, and AI data centers have become a live issue in the 2026 race there. In nearby Falls Township, residents have already raised concerns about the AI data center there at a Bucks County Commissioners meeting, and the two candidates for Congress have taken clearly different positions on what should come next. The question for voters is whether new projects should move ahead now or wait until residents know who pays for the power, water, and infrastructure they require.

Where Bob Harvie and Brian Fitzpatrick Differ on Data Centers

Bob Harvie, a Bucks County Commissioner and the Democratic candidate, is calling for a moratorium on new data center development. He says that before another project is approved, residents need to know energy costs won't be passed on to ratepayers, how much water and electricity a facility will consume, and how many long-term local jobs it will create.

Fitzpatrick has not called for a moratorium. He instead supports legislation requiring more transparency for proposed data centers and ensuring ratepayers don't foot the bill, and he cosponsored the Ratepayer Protection Act, which passed the House and has large data centers cover the incremental cost of the generation, transmission, and distribution built for them. He has also called Amazon's Falls Township investment one of the most transformative Bucks County has seen in decades.

The contrast for voters is straightforward: a moratorium until the cost, water, power, and jobs questions are answered, versus a transparency and cost-coverage approach without a pause.

How Bensalem Voters Should Decide on November 3

Bensalem voters who want new data centers paused until the questions about ratepayer costs, water and power use, and local jobs are answered should support Bob Harvie in the 2026 U.S. House race; register by October 19, 2026, and make a plan to vote on November 3.