Sports Betting Ballot Initiative Approved In MissouriLake Of Ozarks Casino Plan Rejected |
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After some major efforts from sports franchises like the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals, and St. Louis Cardinals and Blues, a sports betting initiative was recently approved to appear on the state ballot in November.
Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft® certified a petition for the ballot measure on Tuesday and voters can now decide the issue in November. The petition came after legislators failed to approve a bill over the last few years.
“Missouri is now just one step away from joining most other states in legalizing sports betting and being able to provide millions of dollars to Missouri classrooms,” Cardinals President Bill DeWitt III said in a statement. “A vote for Amendment 2 in November is the right thing to do for both Missouri public schools and our favorite sports teams.”
Missourians Appear To Support Plan
The Winning for Missouri Education spent $6.5 million on the petition drive and submitted more than 340,000 signatures. The campaign was backed and funded by the teams as well as major sports betting operators.
Kansas already passed sports betting in 2022 and now many in the neighboring state are hoping to see betting go live soon as well. According to the Kansas City Star, a March poll found that 60% of likely voters favored legalization while 25% were against the measure and another 14% were uncommitted.
Casino Plans Falls Short
The sports betting ballot initiative may have been given the go-ahead but the secretary of state’s office rejected a petition for a vote on a new casino license for the Lake of the Ozarks area. The petition drive fell short of the required number of signatures needed in three of the state’s eight congressional districts, a review of voter files found. Developers have vowed to continue the fight however.
“We are confident we have collected enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot,” Ed Rhode, a spokesman for the organizers, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “Meanwhile, our legal team is assessing our next steps. We are confident that after all the signatures are counted and verified we will appear on the November 2024 ballot.”
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