SHINGLE SPRINGS, Calif. —
It's one of the busiest times of the year for sports fans across the country. Major League Baseball's World Series will begin soon, the National Football League is several weeks into its season, and the National Basketball League's season just tipped off.
Because sports betting is illegal in the state, Californians who want to wager on any of those games (and beyond) have to go to nearby Nevada to place their bets.
Propositions 26 and 27 aim to open up the nation's most populous state to the booming, multi-billion-dollar industry that is sports betting. The matchup between the two ballot initiatives represents a battle over who will take control of what's expected to be an extremely lucrative industry in California: tribal casinos or gambling corporations.
Tribes have said in the final weeks leading up to the election that they're focused on defeating Proposition 27, the measure that would legalize online sports betting.
"It’s a direct attack on our tribal sovereignty," said Regina Cuellar, the tribal chairwoman of the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians.
Cuellar's tribe and dozens of others have spent millions fighting their online foes. The group supports Proposition 26, which legalizes sports betting in tribal casinos and on some horse racing tracks across the state.
"It allows us to keep our sovereignty, and that’s important to us," Cuellar said. "We’re able to regulate our membership, we’re able to set our own rules and take care of our members, and that’s something that gaming has allowed us to do."
The Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians operates Redhawk Casino in Northern California, which has a major expansion underway. That expansion includes a 150-room hotel, plus its new APEX entertainment center.
The entertainment center is under construction, and once completed at the end of the year will feature a bowling alley and go-kart track. Casino officials said if Proposition 26 passes, the APEX would also provide space for the casino's sports book.
Tribes like these promise funds collected from sports betting will go back into their local communities. The Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians points to its new health center as an example.
"I think the tribes have shown how good stewards we are," Cuellar said.
She noted casinos operated by tribes statewide provide more than 150,000 jobs and pay their share of state taxes to provide vital services.
Proposition 26 versus Proposition 27 is the costliest and one of the most contentious matchups on California's ballot.
The online sports measure, Prop 27, also promises an injection of money into the community, promising a small portion of sports wagering revenue to the state for housing and mental health services. It’s backed by online gambling giants, FanDuel and DraftKings.
"We’re fighting towards Election Day," Prop 27 campaign spokesperson Nathan Click said.
Click rebuked arguments by tribes that claim the measure would open up gambling to minors by allowing it on mobile devices. He also called the tribal effort to defeat Prop 27 hypocritical, because tribes are working on a 2024 ballot measure to legalize online sports betting, but exclusively under the control of tribes.
"This really isn’t about minors; this isn’t about safety. It’s about their control of the marketplace," Click said.
Those for and against Props 26 and 27 have raised a total of $548.6 million, according to the state's latest campaign finance data. It’s the most expensive ballot fight in U.S. history.
But despite the big cash bets, the odds may not be in their favor. A recent UC Berkeley/IGS poll earlier this month showed likely voters would reject both.
"We still have a couple of weeks, so we’ll see what the voters say," Cuellar said.
At a gaming expo in Las Vegas earlier this month, DraftKings CEO Jason Robins reportedly said online sports betting likely won't be legalized in California this year but more likely in 2024.
"Regardless of what happens in November, we’re open to a path forward with the Legislature or whoever," Click said. "Our door remains open to all of the stakeholders."
https://www.kcra.com/article/proposition-26-27-legalizing-sports-betting-online/41759099#