Florida sports betting war turns ugly with aggressive lobbying complaints
Media reports allege Seminole Tribe actively ‘blocking’ rival efforts to force defeat of legislative change initiatives
The Seminole Tribe’s efforts to retain its exclusivity of offering sports betting in Florida have turned into an increasingly bitter war for Floridian voter ballot signatures, according to media reports.
In claims published by media outlet POLITICO, it is alleged the Seminole Tribe, which is currently fighting to retain a 30-year gaming compact with the state in the US courts, has instituted an active ‘blocking’ campaign to prevent rivals from gaining a foothold in the Sunshine State.
The campaign reportedly includes paying petition gathering firms in Florida excessive amounts in exchange for exclusivity with the Seminole initiative, while separately paying workers to interfere with rival petitions.
In addition, the Seminoles, which operate the Hard Rock Digital brand are running an informal side petition effort, which is reportedly organized by a convicted voting fraudster.
At a voter level, the Seminole Tribes “Standing up for Florida” campaign warns Florida residents about “out-of-state” gambling operators, which have accelerated their plans following the signing of the Tribe’s new legislative compact in May.
A 30-second “Watch Out Florida” commercial highlights petitions made by operator-backed political action committees (PAC) which aim to force a voter ballot on sports betting legislation.
Florida political and communications consultant Rick Asnani serves as chairman of the campaign along with other members of his Cornerstone Solutions lobbying firm.
In comments reported by POLITICO, a spokesperson for the Seminoles said the tribe had “assembled the best team of political consultants in the country”.
“It is currently engaged to oppose multiple outside interests that have initially invested a combined $60 million in PAC money to hire more than 1,000 people to fight the Tribe’s success,” the spokesperson added.
One of the PAC’s finding themselves within the Seminole Tribe’s crosshairs is Florida Education Champions (FEC), a Florida-based not-for-profit PAC backed by DraftKings and FanDuel, which have each pitched in with $10m in funding donations.
The FEC is aiming to allow exclusive access to operators which have been authorized to conduct online sports betting in at least 10 states for one year, as well as Native American tribes which already have a gaming compact with the state.
Operators meeting this criterion would then face an eight-month delay before they can begin operating in Florida.
A rival effort called Florida Voters in Charge is backed by land-based operator Las Vegas Sands (LVS) and the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, Alabama.
LVS has donated more than $17m to the campaign, while the Poarch Band of Creek Indians has itself donated $1m. The PAC proposes a constitutional amendment aimed at allowing North Florida parimutuel card rooms to develop into full land-based casino operators.
Each initiative is required to obtain signatures from 891,589 Florida voters by the end of 2021 to be included on a November 2022 ballot and would require a 60% vote to pass.
In recent media reports it was suggested that both initiatives would fall short of this mark, reports which gain credence following these allegations.
At a wider level, the Seminole Tribe is expected to hear tomorrow if it will be allowed to continue to operate sports betting in the state as part of a second stay ruling, while a legal appeal is considered following the US court’s decision to invalidate its compact on legal grounds.