The initiative to open sports betting in Missouri is facing a legal challenge, which means there is a possibility that voters will not have a chance to weigh in on an issue that has been shelved in the legislature for more than five years.
Missouri had redistricting in 2020
Last week, the Missouri Independent reported that a lawsuit filed in Cole County Circuit Court challenges the way the secretary of state certified the initiative.
So they filed suit just over a week after the secretary of state announced that proponents had collected enough verified signatures to get on the ballot.
What is at issue are the electoral districts used by the secretary of state to certify the initiative. In Missouri, a proposal needs verified signatures from 8% of voters in six of the state’s eight congressional districts. Lawmakers redrawn districts in 2020.
The Independent reported that, according to the lawsuit, the secretary of state’s office used the old districts to determine whether enough verified signatures were collected, but used the new districts to determine where voters live.
In other words, this means that even if a signature came from a person who continues to live at the same address, it may not count in the same district today as it did before the 2020 change. It also claims that some signatures are invalid.
For the president of the Chiefs, sports betting is “good for the state”
The initiative would allow mobile betting across the state. So, most of the time, platforms would have to be tied to existing casinos or professional sports venues. There would be two standalone mobile licenses available.
Online betting houses and professional sports teams in the state support the proposal. “I spend more time in Jefferson City on this issue than anywhere else,” said Kansas City Chiefs President Mark Donovan.
“We really believe it’s the right thing. We think it’s good for the state, we think it’s good for sports fans and other sports fans. It’s something that has worked, you know, to a pretty significant level, in virtually every state neighboring Missouri.”
But, according to some sources, the initiative does not have the full support of the state’s physical casinos. The proposal would assign a brand or digital platform to each casino company.
Therefore, this structure differs from bills that had casino support in the state legislature. Previous proposals would have assigned one brand per physical casino, up to three per company. Several companies, including Caesars Entertainment and Penn Entertainment, have three or more locations in the state.
Of the eight states that border Missouri, only Oklahoma does not offer any form of legal betting. Nebraska only offers in-person betting and the other six states allow both online and in-person betting.
