After some main efforts from sports activities franchises just like the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals, and St. Louis Cardinals and Blues, a sports activities betting initiative was not too long ago authorized to seem on the state poll in November.
Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft® licensed a petition for the poll measure on Tuesday and voters can now resolve the difficulty in November. The petition got here after legislators didn’t approve a invoice over the previous couple of 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 mentioned in an announcement. “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 greater than 340,000 signatures. The marketing campaign was backed and funded by the groups in addition to main sports activities betting operators.
Kansas already handed sports activities betting in 2022 and now many within the neighboring state are hoping to see betting go stay quickly as effectively. According to the Kansas City Star, a March ballot discovered that 60% of possible voters favored legalization whereas 25% have been towards the measure and one other 14% have been uncommitted.
Casino Plans Falls Short
The sports activities betting poll initiative might have been given the go-ahead however the secretary of state’s workplace rejected a petition for a vote on a brand new on line casino license for the Lake of the Ozarks space. The petition drive fell wanting the required variety of signatures wanted in three of the state’s eight congressional districts, a evaluation of voter information discovered. Developers have vowed to proceed the battle nonetheless.
“We are confident we have collected enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot,” Ed Rhode, a spokesman for the organizers, informed 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.”
