LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Local Voters in Charge announced that the group submitted 162,181 signatures to the office of Secretary of State John Thurston, putting Arkansas voters one step closer to having the final say on whether casinos can be built in their communities.
The proposed amendment would require a countywide special election before building any new casinos or issuing casino licenses in the state.
“In record numbers, the people of Arkansas have supported our campaign to give local voters the final say on whether a casino should be built in their town or not,” said Local Voters in Charge committee member Hans Stiritz. “Some communities might want casinos, others might not, but nearly everyone agrees that it should be up to local voters to determine the character of the communities in which they live.”
The group surpassed the 90,704-voter signature requirement to place the proposed constitutional amendment on the November ballot.
In the past, expanding gambling interests in Arkansas required a local vote in affected communities, until 2018 when an amendment was placed on the statewide ballot that authorized casinos in four Arkansas counties without a local option.
Three of the counties voted to approve the amendment, while Pope County rejected the proposal. However, a new poll of likely voters in Pope County revealed that more than 55% of them support a casino there.
“Our amendment language was approved by the Attorney General and we have substantially exceeded the signature and county distribution requirements for ballot initiatives. The people of Arkansas have, by their signatures, demanded a vote on this issue,” said Stiritz
Natalie Ghidotti, vice chairman of Investing In Arkansas, which opposes the ballot proposal that would repeal the Pope County casino, issued the following statement:
“While sufficient signatures may have been turned in, this group — solely backed by a rejected out-of-state casino operator, the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma — has spent the last several months lying to Arkansans about the true intent of this ballot initiative.
“This small group wants you to believe their efforts are about a local vote, but in reality, it is about revoking the casino license from Pope County — a license awarded just last week by the state of Arkansas to Cherokee Nation Entertainment.
“Arkansas voters approved Amendment 100 in 2018, and a majority of Pope County voters still stand by that decision. This small group, funded by the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, is trying to rob Arkansans of thousands of jobs and shut down what will be historic economic growth for the community, region, and state.”
For a full breakdown of how each proposed initiative performed ahead of the deadline in Arkansas, you can click here.