By David Morgan
WASHINGTON, Sept 25 (Reuters) - US Senate Republicans aim to improve their election prospects by voting on legislation that seeks to protect consumers from rising electricity bills caused by data centers, hoping to win over voters struggling with inflation stoked by President Donald Trump's war with Iran.
Republicans had the option to depart Washington on Thursday and stay out until after the November 3 midterm election. But they chose to return next week to take up the Ratepayer Protection
Act at the behest of Senator Jon Husted, who is trailing the Democratic candidate, former Senator Sherrod Brown, in Ohio, a state Trump won by more than 11 points in 2024.
Republicans believe their votes in favor of the bill will demonstrate their commitment to helping voters focused on a cost-of-living crisis, with polls showing broad opposition to data centers despite Trump's support for their development.
Holding a vote on the bill is the latest sign of Republican anxiety in the face of Trump's record-low approval rating less than six weeks before Election Day, when Republicans hope to retain control of the Senate and House of Representatives.
This angst has prompted Republicans to find ways to break with Trump and address voter frustrations that analysts say have raised Democratic hopes even in traditionally Republican states such as Kansas and Nebraska.
REPUBLICANS CALL FOR END TO IRAN WAR
Senate Republican candidates Mike Rogers of Michigan and Allison Hinson of Iowa, who are locked in tight election contests, have called for a quick end to the Iran war, which has disrupted oil supplies and caused energy prices to surge.
Other Republicans including Senator Roger Marshall of Kansas have begun voicing concern about immigration enforcement operations in their states, one of Trump's signature initiatives.
"It's not a great environment. There are headwinds we're facing in all the races around the country," said Senate Majority Leader John Thune.
He told reporters earlier this week that demonstrating independence from Trump on issues important to local constituents was the best way for Republican candidates to win.
Trump's approval ratings have fallen even among Republicans, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll showing party support for the president dropping nine points to 73% over the course of a week.
In key battleground states such as Georgia, Iowa, Maine, North Carolina and Texas, the president's approval ratings reported by polling analytics firm Civiqs were double digits below his share of the 2024 presidential election vote.
Though Trump is not on the November ballot, he has remained at the center of the campaign and dominated a Republican convention in Dallas this month intended to boost Republican candidates for Congress.
"The election cycle is about Trump, and he's not given anybody anything to vote for other than his MAGA agenda," said Chuck Coughlin, an independent strategist who heads the Arizona-based firm Highground Inc.
Up to now, Republicans have promoted tax cuts contained in Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill, which went into effect in 2025, as evidence of their effort to address affordability, while contrasting themselves with Democrats on transgender issues and other culture-war topics.
ACTING ON ELECTRICITY RATES
Data centers are proliferating as artificial intelligence requires increasing computing power. Costs for grid upgrades needed to meet data centers' massive energy demands have in many cases been passed on to residential electricity consumers.
The Ratepayer Protection Act would require state utility regulators to consider whether large electricity users including data centers should bear the incremental costs of power infrastructure built to serve them. It passed the House of Representatives in a 417-3 vote. A procedural vote was expected in the Senate on Wednesday.
Democrats, who blocked an attempt by Husted last week to pass the legislation through unanimous consent, said the bill does not go far enough to protect consumers. They have proposed the GRID Savings Act, which would require large data centers to pay the full cost of grid upgrades needed to serve them.
"Senator Husted's bill is a fraud. It's voluntary. No company has to do it. The bill we have is mandatory. It is much stronger," Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer told reporters.
Given Democratic opposition, Republicans hope to use next week's vote to show the public that they, not Democrats, are ready to address high costs.
"They say they're for more affordability. This is a chance for everybody to prove it," Husted told reporters.
(Reporting by David Morgan; Editing by Michael Learmonth and Cynthia Osterman)
