When Donald Trump came to Michigan last week to speak at a General Motors vehicle-testing facility, he likely expected to find a friendly crowd.

That wasn’t entirely the case. A group of protesters holding yellow signs that read “stop data centers” interrupted the president, chanting, “Data centers no, people pay the bill,” until they were removed by security.

Will Lawrence, a progressive Democratic candidate in Michigan’s seventh congressional district—where that General Motors plant is located—was unsurprised by the protesters’ fury. “That’s what we’re tapping into,” he posted on social media.

People across Michigan have pushed back on data center proposals in recent months, raising concerns about the facilities’ energy demands. In response, Lawrence, a climate activist turned politician, has made opposition to hyperscale data centers central to his campaign. And he’s betting that standing up to data centers will help him get votes from across the aisle, too.

“Since I declared my candidacy last August, we’ve had four major data centers, including three hyperscalers, proposed in the district in Lansing, in Mason, in Howell Township, and in Lyon Township,” Lawrence said at a panel discussion........

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