在供给端，北美电网可靠性公司预测美国未来十年夏季电力需求将再增 224 吉瓦（224,000 兆瓦），约相当于新增 1.8 亿户住宅用电量，增幅被比为二战时期级别。宾州 PJM 区域方面，BloombergNEF 指出宾州、纽泽西与马里兰自2020 年起居民电价已上涨约 40%；东宾州部分地区上涨 200%，今年平均月帐单又增加约 23 美元。服务约 150 万宾州客户的 PPL 表示，在资料中心繁荣前，电厂退休与供应转紧已推高成本。Monitoring Analytics 估计资料中心在截至2028 年5月的三年期内，仍可能再向 PJM 客户帐单增加至少 230 亿美元；且这些电网及批发成本不只在资料中心热点地区出现。
在宾州第7选区，现任众议员 Ryan Mackenzie（2024 年胜差 4,000 票）与挑战者 Carol Obando-Derstine 都强调可负担性，但在解法上分歧。Mackenzie 将责任归咎于 Biden 时期政策，主张凭煤炭、天然气与核能确保稳定且较低成本供电；Obando-Derstine 则认为 AI 资料中心是主因，提出重启清洁能源与效率激励。州长 Josh Shapiro 提到2024 年起诉 PJM 后达成的 180 亿美元和解作为成效，但听证证词仍显示压力上升：Allentown 一间饭店帐单从约 14,000 美元升到 18,500 美元，另有居民冬季帐单从约 200 美元跃升到 367 美元。故 11 月结果可能取决于在任者是否能交付可信的降费行动，而非抽象口号。
Household electricity costs in the U.S. are now a central campaign issue. The article profiles 74-year-old Kris Burek in Slatington, Pennsylvania, who tracks usage daily after bills nearly doubled and says she will support any candidate who lowers bills. National pressures are wider: AI data-center expansion, tariffs, grid upgrades, and Iran war fuel disruption have pushed electricity prices up. After 2024 voters punished the economy-first backlash, 2026 midterms are framed as a test of who can make utility bills manageable, with Ipsos showing three in four voters worried and Democrats winning key races in New Jersey, Virginia, and Georgia after focusing on energy costs.
On supply, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation projects U.S. summer demand rising by 224 gigawatts over ten years, roughly adding power use equivalent to 180 million homes, a surge compared with World War II pace. In Pennsylvania’s PJM region, BloombergNEF says residential rates in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Maryland are up about 40% since 2020; parts of eastern Pennsylvania are up 200%, lifting this year’s average monthly bills by around $23. PPL, serving about 1.5 million Pennsylvania customers, notes plant retirements and tighter supply before the data-center boom. Monitoring Analytics estimates data centers could add at least $23 billion to PJM customer bills through May 2028, and those grid and wholesale costs spread beyond data-center hubs.
In Pennsylvania’s 7th District, Representative Ryan Mackenzie (2024 margin 4,000 votes) and challenger Carol Obando-Derstine both stress affordability but split over solutions. Mackenzie blames Biden-era policies and favors coal, gas, and nuclear for reliable, lower-cost electricity; Obando-Derstine blames AI data centers and proposes revived clean-energy and efficiency incentives. Governor Josh Shapiro cites an $18 billion PJM settlement after his 2024 lawsuit, yet testimonies still show strain from $14,000 to $18,500 hotel bills and winter bills jumping from about $200 to $367. November may therefore hinge on whether incumbents can deliver credible bill relief rather than slogans.