Gambling companies place a $22.7 million bet on Florida ballot initiatives
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TALLAHASSEE — Two companies last month poured more than $22.7 million into separate ballot initiatives aimed at expanding gambling in Florida.
Online platform DraftKings, Inc. contributed $12.71 million to a political committee known as Florida Education Champions, according to finance reports posted Wednesday on the state Division of Elections website. That brought the total contributed by DraftKings to $22.71 million, while another online platform, FanDuel, has contributed $10 million in cash and made $106,000 in in-kind contributions.
The Florida Education Champions initiative would legalize sports betting at professional sports venues, pari-mutuel facilities and statewide via mobile applications. It had spent about $16.2 million as of Oct. 31, according to its finance report.
As of Thursday, the state Division of Elections had received 92,205 valid petition signatures for the initiative. Florida Education Champions would need to submit 891,589 signatures to get on the November 2022 ballot.
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Meanwhile last month, Las Vegas Sands Corp. contributed $10 million to the political committee known as Florida Voters in Charge. The casino company has now contributed slightly more than $27 million to the Florida Voters in Charge initiative, which would open the door for casinos at existing gambling facilities in North Florida.
Florida Voters in Charge had spent $16 million as of Oct. 31, according to its finance report.
The Division of Elections had received 113,822 valid petition signatures for the Florida Voters in Charge initiative as of Thursday, according to the division’s website.
The move comes as sports betting became legal in Florida earlier this month under an exclusive agreement between the state and the Seminole Tribe. Florida residents can now bet on games using an app on their phone provided by the tribe.
