A lawsuit has been filed in Missouri challenging the legality of placing a sports betting legalization question on the November ballot. The lawsuit argues that the petition did not gather the correct number of valid signatures required for approval. If successful, the sports betting question will not be included on the ballot.
The complaint, filed in the Circuit Court of Cole County, alleges that Secretary of State John Ashcroft should not have approved the petition from the “Winning for Missouri Education” group. Despite surpassing the overall signature goal, the campaign reportedly failed to reach the necessary signature target in several districts within the state.
The campaign collected over 340,000 signatures before the May 5 deadline, exceeding the required number by a significant margin. The initiative has garnered support from professional sports teams in the state and leading sportsbook operators. DraftKings, in particular, donated $3.5 million to promote the proposal, bringing its total contribution to nearly $6 million.
If approved, Missouri would become the 39th state in the US to legalize sports betting. Casinos and sports teams would be permitted to offer retail sports betting and partner with online operators.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit, political consultants Blake Lawrence and Jacqueline Wood, claim that the petition failed to collect enough signatures in specific congressional districts. They argue that the Secretary of State’s calculations were incorrect due to the use of outdated district lines and that some signatures were invalid.
The petition required a certain number of valid signatures in at least six of Missouri’s eight congressional districts to qualify for the ballot. The campaign fell short in the first and fifth districts, with a surplus of just 82 signatures in the first district and 1,064 in the fifth district.
Critics of the lawsuit, including St. Louis Cardinals President Bill DeWitt III, argue that it lacks merit. The “Winning for Missouri Education” campaign has also submitted a motion to intervene in the case.
Overall, the lawsuit in Missouri has raised questions about the validity of the sports betting legalization petition and whether it met the requirements for inclusion on the November ballot. The outcome of the legal challenge will determine whether voters in the state will have the opportunity to decide on the issue of sports betting legalization.