By Tim McLaughlin

(Reuters) -Georgia voters on Tuesday night unseated two Republican utility commissioners over escalating electricity rates, in what could be an early signal of a consumer backlash against data centers and Republican President Donald Trump’s aggressive push to develop nuclear power.

The energy needs of AI-fueled data centers are forcing utility regulators throughout the country to reckon with the cost of building billions of dollars of infrastructure projects for new generation and upgraded transmission lines. In some places, consumers have faced higher rates as demand outpaces available power supply.

At least one Wall Street firm reacted swiftly to the special election’s outcome, downgrading the stock of the state’s largest utility, Southern Co, to a “Hold” rating from

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