Mobile sports betting would be regulated by the Georgia Lottery. Jones says a legislative counsel has advised him that authorizing mobile sports betting doesn’t require a constitutional ballot referendum because it would essentially become another lottery game.<\/p>\n
The resolution and sports betting bill both face long odds. The Georgia Legislature is in its final week for the 2020 session, and the state has long been anti-gambling.<\/p>\n
Pew Research ranks Georgia No. 8 as the most religious state. The research firm found that 66 percent of all Georgians consider themselves “highly religious,” and 84 percent “say they believe in God with absolute certainty.”<\/p>\n
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For decades, state lawmakers have been apprehensive in supporting gambling initiatives, which typically tend to go against the values of their constituents.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Jones said he would prefer “the citizens have a say” in legalizing sports betting, “but two-thirds of the legislature has never allowed that to happen.” His bill only needs a simple majority in the General Assembly to go to Gov. Brian Kemp’s (R) desk.<\/p>\n
Kemp opposes gambling but says he will not stand in the way of bills that have bipartisan support.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The most pressing decision facing Georgia voters come November will be whether to reelect President Donald Trump, or go with presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden. But another critical issue could also require their attention. Georgia is one of only five states that does not have commercial or tribal casinos, parimutuel wagering, or sports betting. The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":139569,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[62,13],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Georgia Voters Could Face Casino Ballot Referendum in November<\/title>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n