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Support for legalizing sports betting in Missouri has declined by double-digits as U.S. voters head to the polls on Election Day, according to the most recent poll on the initiative.
An Emerson College/Midwest Newsroom survey of 1,000 registered voters conducted between September 26 and October 2 found that just 36 percent supported legalizing sports betting when asked if they thought that was “a good or bad thing for Missouri”.
That proportion of voters was less than the 39 percent who said sports betting was a bad thing, while 25 percent said they were unsure or had no opinion.
Although the methodologies were different and the two polls are not directly comparable, the results represented a steep decline from the 52 percent of likely voters who said they intended to vote in support of Amendment 2 in an earlier Emerson College poll that was conducted on September 12-13. That poll found 25.3 percent of Missourians opposed the constitutional amendment, while 22.7 percent were opposed.
The first poll had asked likely voters specifically how they intended to vote on the sports-betting ballot measure.
The polling data points to a likely close race over the Missouri sports-betting referendum that has pitted powerful stakeholders in the U.S. gaming against each other.
As of October 28, Winning for Missouri Education, which collected 340,000 petition signatures to get Amendment 2 on the ballot, had raised $42.25m in total campaign contributions from FanDuel and DraftKings, who each contributed $20.125m.
The coalition is also supported by the state’s five professional sports franchises, including the National Hockey League’s St. Louis Blues and the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League.
With less than a week before Election Day, the professional sports franchise each contributed just over $33,000 to the Winning for Missouri Education campaign, according to filings with the Missouri Ethics Commission.
On the opposing side, Missourians Against the Deceptive Online Gambling Amendment has raised $14.16m from Caesars Entertainment and the three casinos it operates in the state. The group was formed in early September and opposes the structure of the sports-betting ballot initiative, rather than the legalization of sports wagering in Missouri per se.
Other Missouri casino operators including Boyd Gaming, which operates two casinos in Missouri, have remained quiet on whether they support the sports-betting measure.
Boyd CEO Keith Smith did not discuss the issue during the company’s third-quarter earnings conference call on October 24 but stressed that the company’s partnership with FanDuel continues to be a profitable business relationship and that the value of Boyd's 5 percent stake in FanDuel would increase as “FanDuel’s leadership position in online gaming continues to grow”.
Bally’s Corp. and Penn Entertainment also own casinos in Missouri, with Bally’s set to release third-quarter earnings on Wednesday (November 6), followed on Thursday by Penn. The other casino operators in Missouri are Affinity Interactive and Century Casinos.
The threshold to pass Amendment 2 in Missouri is one vote more than 50 percent.
Currently, some form of sports betting is legal in 38 states and the District of Columbia, and Missouri is the only state with sports betting on a state-wide ballot this year.
If the Missouri ballot measure fails, it will mean that 2024 will be the first year since 2016 that no new U.S. state has passed a law to authorize sports betting.
Sports betting has been a contentious issue among lawmakers in the state capitol in Jefferson City. The disagreement has been largely due to legislators who support legalizing video gaming terminals (VGTs) who have refused to support sports-betting bills unless provisions for VGTs are also included.
Republican state Senator Denny Hoskins, who is running to become Missouri's Secretary of State in Tuesday's election, has supported legalizing VGTs and opposes Amendment 2, citing the low tax rate and not enough money being set aside for problem gambling.
If approved by voters, the measure would authorize land-based sports wagering at riverboat casinos and professional sports facilities, as well as granting each team and casino owner in Missouri one mobile betting skin.
The Missouri Gaming Commission (MGC) would also be authorized to issue two untethered mobile betting licenses, based on selection criteria that would largely appear to favor FanDuel and DraftKings as the two largest sports-betting operators in the U.S.
The measure would establish a sports-betting tax rate of 10 percent and include deductions for federal excise tax payments, plus promotional play of up to 25 percent of the operator’s total cash received for a month.
Casino Expansion On Ballot In Three States
Elsewhere on Election Day, Missouri voters will determine the fate of a separate ballot measure that would authorize the MGC to issue a new casino license for a riverboat casino on the Osage River near the Lake of the Ozarks tourist resort.
Currently, there are 13 licensed casinos in the state, all located on the Missouri and Mississippi rivers. If Amendment 5 passes, the state would eventually have 14 casinos.
Bally’s is expected to develop the Osage River casino, with proponents raising more than $10m to campaign in favor of the initiative, according to state campaign finance records.
In Virginia, local voters in Petersburg will decide whether the city will become the fifth in Virginia to approve a casino referendum.
In 2020, the Virginia General Assembly passed legislation establishing Bristol, Danville, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Richmond as host cities for casinos, subject to local voter approval. Four of the five cities approved a referendum, but Richmond voters twice declined to pass a ballot initiative.
That opened the door for lawmakers earlier this year to authorize a Petersburg referendum while removing Richmond from the list of eligible casino cities.
Meanwhile, Arkansas voters will weigh in on Issue 2 to repeal the constitutional authorization for a casino license in Pope County and require any other casino proposal in the state to be approved by voters in a state-wide election, plus an additional vote of approval in the specific county where the facility would be located.
Voters approved four casinos in Arkansas in 2018, including one in Pope County. While the other three casinos are open, the Pope County license has been tied up in legal battles since gaming was approved.
