Anti-casino question could be on the ballot in Massachusetts
If you’ve been following land-based casino news over the last few weeks, you know that MGM was recently handed a license to open a casino in Massachusetts. But a few anti-activists might end up putting a stop to it thanks to some hard work gathering signatures.
According to a report, anti-casino activists have collected more than twice the number of signatures required to keep a question on the ballot to repeal Massachusetts’ Expanded Gaming Act.
The ballot question to repeal the act was initially rejected by Attorney General Martha Coakley back in September. She argued that if the act was repealed, it would violate the constitution. But she eventually said she’d defer to the state Supreme Court for a final ruling.
We don’t want to bore you with legalities and constitutional law, but in Massachusetts, if a ballot question isn’t considered even after getting the 68,911 certified signatures, it needs to get another 11,485 signatures to be considered.
The anti-casino activists have garnered twice that amount. There’s still a chance that the state could reject the ballot question, even with all those additional signatures supporting it, so the decision really remains with the Supreme Court.
What does this all mean? Well, if the Supreme Court doesn’t allow the ballot question, MGM would get right to work on building its casino with its license in hand. If the Supreme Court allows the ballot question, it will be up to voters to decide everything this November.
The Massachusetts Expanded Gaming Act is a pretty big deal. It allows for up to three casinos to be built, with one casino operating in three distinct regions. If you’re a fan of land-based gambling and want to complement your online casino experience at places like Palace of Chance with a land-based experience that’s close to home, you’ll want to stay locked to Palace of Chance for all the latest information.
The battle for the land-based casino push will continue up until the election- and we’ll be watching every second of it.
