Congressional Districts Center of Lawsuit
The new lawsuit, filed by two political consultants, alleges that the Secretary of State’s office erred in confirming the ballot initiative's signatures. According to Missouri law, the effort needed signatures from 8% of voters from six of the state’s eight congressional districts.
The Secretary of State’s office confirmed these requirements were met, but the lawsuit alleges they used congressional maps from 2020. District lines have been redrawn since then, and the updated map should have been used.
Group Behind Initiative Responds
Winning For Missouri Education, behind the initiative, has filed a motion to intervene, throwing itself into the lawsuit. The group comprises the state’s major pro sports teams and receives funding from FanDuel and DraftKings.
They gathered more than twice the number of signatures required, showing impressive support for legalizing sports betting.
“This effort to decertify our ballot inactive is completely without merit, as Missourians came out in force to sign the petition that will be on the ballot in November,” St. Louis Cardinals President Bill DeWitt III said in a statement.
Other Players Could Be Behind Lawsuit
Two political consultants, Jackqueline Wood and Blake Lawrence, filed the legal challenge. However, some question whether opponents in the state legislature could be behind the effort.
The current ballot initiative was done to circumvent years of legislative roadblocks. Some legislatures were concerned about problem gambling, but others demanded that Video Lottery Terminals (VLTs) be included in any sports betting bill. That led to many sports betting bills failing to even get to a vote.
One of those two groups could use these two consultants to fight the effort without publicly revealing themselves. Given the strong support for the industry and an election coming in November, few legislators will want to attach their name to any opposition.
