California Democratic Party against online sports betting
The California Democratic Party will oppose a November ballot proposition allowing online sports betting.
The party’s executive board voted over the weekend to fight against the passage of Proposition 27, a proposal allowing online betting that was backed by major sportsbooks, including BetMGM, DraftKings and FanDuel.
The party voted to remain neutral on Proposition 26, a dueling ballot initiative that would allow only in-person betting at tribal casinos and horse-racing tracks.
Proposition 26 has the backing of some of California’s Native American tribes with gaming interests. Reid Milanovich, tribal chairman of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, praised the party’s decision to oppose the online betting proposal, calling the initiative “a direct attack on tribal gaming and Indian self-reliance.”
“By opposing Prop 27, California Democrats rejected out-of-state corporations and reaffirmed their commitment to California’s Indian tribes,” he said in a statement.
California represents potentially the largest market yet for sportsbooks since the U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for more states to legalize betting in 2018.
Voters can approve one, neither or both of the initiatives. If both proposals pass, courts might have to decide whether the initiatives can co-exist. Backers of the online proposal have said the measures can work in tandem, but backers of the tribal proposal have launched a campaign to defeat the online option.
If both proposals pass and are ruled to be in conflict with each other, then the one that had the higher percentage of “yes” votes goes into effect.
Contact Jim Barnes at jbarnes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @JimBarnesLV on Twitter.
