Cherokee Nation Initiates Opposition to Casino Referendum in Pope County
The Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma is the top contender to win the sole casino license up for grabs in Arkansas. Through their commercial subsidiary, Cherokee Nation Businesses (CNB), the tribe is anticipated to be the only eligible candidate for the gaming permit designated for Pope County.
The Arkansas Racing Commission (ARC) is due to receive bids for the Pope County casino position. Bidding regulations dictate that only applications paired with a letter of endorsement from the incumbent Pope County judge or Pope County quorum court will qualify.
The Cherokees' proposal, Legends Resort & Casino in Russellville, is claimed to win the approval of both Pope County Judge Ben Cross and the Pope County Quorum Court, which indicates that other propositions would presumably be dismissed. However, a legal maneuver initiated by opponents threatens the Legends project.
To defend it, the Cherokees have initiated a crusade against the ballot referendum dubbed "Investing in Arkansas."
PAC Formation
In March, Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin (R) endorsed ballot terminology submitted by a group called "Local Voters in Charge." The campaign set out to scrap the Pope County casino license ballot-approved by state voters in 2018.
The 2018 initiative obtained substantial backing from state voters for four commercial casinos, with one each in Crittenden, Garland, Jefferson, and Pope. However, Pope County was among only 11 counties in the 75 in Arkansas that rejected the casino question.
Local Voters in Charge seeks to request another gaming referendum and ask statewide voters to repeal the Pope license.
Investing in Arkansas is spending millions of dollars trying to dissuade the public from signing the documents handed out by canvassers with Local Voters in Charge. At the very least, 90,704 registered voters must endorse the Local Voters in Charge campaign for it to reach the November ballot.
Don't be tricked. Refuse to sign the casino repeal," the Investing in Arkansas campaign website insists. "The proposed constitutional amendment would undo the will of the voters and cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue."
The $300 million Legends Resort & Casino would potentially create over 1,000 direct permanent jobs and thousands of indirect jobs in the River Valley area. The Cherokees maintain that the destination would generate a 10-year economic impact exceeding $5 billion.
Local Voters in Charge argues that Pope residents never wanted the casino initially. And as the licensing battle has been ongoing, it's time to re-evaluate the proposal's merits.
Non-Native Interests
Local Voters in Charge is being backed by the Choctaw Nation, another Oklahoma-based tribe. The Choctaws are financing the campaign to abolish the Pope County casino license because a casino in the region would likely endanger their casino resort in Pocola across the Arkansas-Oklahoma border.
Choctaw Casino & Resort Pocola has accommodations for over 100 guests and a casino area with over 1,700 slot machines and 15 live dealer table games.
The Arkansas license earmarked for Jefferson was bestowed upon the Quapaw Nation, yet another tribe headquartered in Oklahoma. The tribe commenced the Saracen Casino Resort, a $350 million endeavor, in October 2020.
The two other casinos authorized by the 2018 ballot measure allowed racino racetracks in Crittenden and Garland to transform into full-scale casinos with slot machines, live dealer table games, and sports betting.
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Source: www.casino.org
