Casino, marijuana efforts advance. Lawsuits coming.

By STEVE BRAWNER

Two citizen-led proposed constitutional amendments advanced toward the November ballot this week. But one that would revoke the Pope County casino has already attracted a lawsuit from opponents, and the other that would expand medical marijuana access still needs more valid voter signatures. 

On Wednesday, Secretary of State John Thurston verified that Local Voters in Charge had collected 116,200 valid voter signatures among the 162,181 it submitted. It was required to submit 90,704 valid ones. 

That’s the group seeking to revoke the Pope County casino license and also require all future casino licenses anywhere to be approved by voters in the county where it would be located.

Afterwards, Local Voters in Charge spokesperson Hans Stiritz said in a statement, “In record numbers, Arkansas voters have stated the obvious – casinos should not be forced into communities that do not want them.”

In 2018, voters statewide approved licenses for casino operations in Garland, Crittenden, Jefferson and Pope counties. Casinos are now operating under those licenses in the first three.

That 2018 amendment passed easily across Arkansas, 54% to 46%. It also passed easily in the three counties that now have casinos. But voters in Pope County, where Russellville is located, opposed it, 61% to 39%. Things have been going back and forth legally ever since. 

Opposing this latest amendment to stop the casino, naturally, is the Pope County licensee. Cherokee Nation Businesses has spent millions of dollars developing the casino amidst numerous legal challenges. It appears on the verge of actually building it – if this amendment doesn’t pass.

Natalie Ghidotti, vice chairman of Investing in Arkansas, said this latest proposed amendment “robs the state, Pope County and Russellville of jobs and revenue to fund essential services that benefit Arkansans – like roads, bridges and education.”

She said that Local Voters in Charge is a “ploy” by the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma “to protect its business interests in another state.” The Choctaw Nation operates eight casinos in Oklahoma and has funded the Local Voters in Charge effort. Cherokee Nation Businesses has funded the Investing in Arkansas effort.

The two sides’ messages will probably remain consistent throughout the upcoming campaign. Supporters will say this election will be about letting local voters decide whether or not a casino will operate in their backyard. So far, they have not really argued against casinos themselves. Opponents will argue that this particular casino would be beneficial, if these out-of-state gambling interests don’t stop it.

Operating parallel to the political campaign will be a legal effort by the opponents to stop it. Amendment opponents almost always sue, resulting in the Arkansas Supreme Court ultimately deciding what makes the ballot. This often occurs so late in the process that ballots are already printed or programmed. Voters see the proposal, but their votes aren’t counted.

That’s exactly what happened Thursday. A new group, the Arkansas Canvassing Compliance Committee, is asking the Arkansas Supreme Court to require Thurston to remove the amendment from the ballot, saying Local Voters in Charge violated Arkansas laws regulating canvassers. It says the canvassers fraudulently obtained signatures by making false and deceptive statements, compensated bonuses to canvassers in violation of the law, and used out-of-state canvassers, which is illegal. It also says the amendment’s popular name and ballot title don’t reflect the amendment’s actual purpose, which is to eliminate the Pope County casino license that’s already been awarded to Cherokee Nation Businesses. 

The news broke after I had already submitted this column, so you’re reading a hastily written update. I have asked Local Voters in Charge for a response, but it has not yet provided one. I’m sure they will dispute all of these accusations.

Thurston on Wednesday also announced that Arkansans for Patient Access, which seeks to expand medical marijuana availability, had fallen short of the required number of signatures but had qualified for a 30-day “cure period.” Citizen-led groups are allowed that extra time under the Constitution if they crossed the initial minimum threshold of 90,704 signatures this year, and at least 75% of that amount, or 68,028, were valid. 

Thurston said the group had submitted at least 77,000 valid signatures among the 111,402 it submitted. It now has 30 days to collect another roughly 14,000 valid ones. Given its financial backing from the marijuana industry, it seems likely it will. If that happens, as with the casino measure, opponents will go to court.

Given recent history, it wouldn’t be a safe bet for either of these two to make it. We’ll see.

Steve Brawner’s column is syndicated to 17 news outlets in Arkansas. Email him at brawnersteve@mac.com.