For the fifth time in the past twenty years, voters in the state of Ohio faced a referendum on the introduction of casino gaming in the state. The previous four times, the measure failed, even as neighboring states such as Michigan, Pennsylvania and West Virginia expanded access to slot machines and table games, pulling in Ohioans and their dollars across state lines.
On Tuesday, voters passed the measure, Issue Three, which would allow for companies to establish casinos in the state. The referendum passed by a margin of fifty-three percent to forty-seven percent. The measure would create zones for casinos to start up near the state’s major metropolitan areas of Cincinnati, Cleveland, Toledo, and the state capital, Columbus. Also, the new amendment would set a one-third tax rate for casino operators and specifies how the influx of new government revenue would be spent.
Dan Gilbert, owner of the National Basketball Association’s Cleveland Cavaliers, was one of the main backers of the referendum. He and his partners in the casino plan paid for numerous advertisements that promised an influx of over thirty thousand new jobs if the measure passed. With the diminished economy, the reduced tax base and a double-digit unemployment rate facing the state, voters appeared to make their decision based on such promises.
With his recent victory, Mr. Gilbert has announced that he is planning on “lighting (Ohio) up like Las Vegas”. After the state establishes its gaming board, he plans to break ground on new casinos in the state within the next twelve months. He estimated that he and his partners, including casino firm Penn National Gaming, Inc., spent over US$35 million on the ad campaign to get the measure passed.
Opponents to the measure are still expressing their dismay at what they see as a blight on the state. A spokesperson for one anti-gambling faction stated that the voters made their decision out of economic despair rather than on the merits of casino gaming. Another voiced their fears that the introduction of casino gaming would increase crimes such as theft, prostitution and assault in the areas near the casinos.
