Texas Lt. Gov.-Elect Goodwin Signals Openness to Casino Resorts
Democrat Vikki Goodwin's upset win over Dan Patrick, paired with a new Democratic governor, revives the long-stalled push to legalise commercial casinos in Texas.
Vikki Goodwin, the Texas state representative from Travis County, has been elected lieutenant governor, defeating three-term Republican incumbent Dan Patrick and becoming the state's first Democrat in the role in nearly three decades.
Goodwin told Casino.org in an interview conducted in September 2025, before the election, that she would be open to legislation permitting resort casinos and sports betting in Texas, positioning herself in direct contrast to Patrick, who has long opposed expanding gambling beyond the state lottery and parimutuel wagering.
Speaking to Casino.org, Goodwin framed the issue as one of public mandate rather than personal preference, despite saying she is not a gambler herself.
"We need to listen to the voters of Texas. There are a number of issues where I think a vast majority of Texans feel one way and their elected representatives are doing the opposite," Goodwin said. "Gambling may be one of those things."
She drew a comparison to the state's THC ban, another policy she described as out of step with public opinion.
"The same goes for the THC ban. Let's put in some regulations, and then let people live their lives. If the majority of Texans say they want to open the state to casino gambling, then let's put in some regulations and allow it," Goodwin said.
Goodwin's win coincided with Gina Hinojosa unseating Republican Governor Greg Abbott, another longtime opponent of casino legalisation, to become Texas's first Hispanic governor and the first Democrat to hold the office since Ann Richards in 1990.
Hinojosa has not spoken as directly on gambling as Goodwin has, but she will face mounting lobbying pressure on the issue before her inauguration on 19 January.
Democrat James Talarico also won a US Senate seat in the same election, the first Democratic senator from Texas since Lloyd Bentsen in 1988, underscoring a broader shift in the state's statewide leadership.
Business figures have been pushing publicly for casino legalisation. Billionaire Mark Cuban has argued Texas needs new attractions to draw out-of-state leisure travellers, while Tilman Fertitta, owner of Golden Nugget Casinos, contends destination casinos would bring tourism, business travel and convention revenue to the state.
Fertitta, who has an agreement in place to acquire Caesars Entertainment, currently operates Golden Nugget Lake Charles in Louisiana, a market where Caesars runs the competing Horseshoe property — meaning Texas legalisation would directly affect his regional operations. He also owns the NBA's Houston Rockets.
By market capitalisation, Las Vegas Sands ranks as the biggest casino operator anywhere, and the company is keeping up a determined lobbying presence in the state capital. The firm's majority owners, principal shareholder Dr. Miriam Adelson and Chairman and CEO Patrick Dumont, who is her son-in-law, also control a majority stake in the NBA's Dallas Mavericks, a franchise in which Cuban holds a minority interest.
Public polling supports the industry's case for a legislative push. A 2025 University of Houston survey found that casino resorts draw backing from 73% of Texans overall, a figure made up of 74% support among Democrats and 72% among Republicans, while 60% of voters said they would back online sports betting.
With both the governor's and lieutenant governor's offices now held by Democrats who have shown at least some openness to gambling expansion, and polling showing bipartisan public support, pressure on the Texas legislature to revisit its ban on commercial casinos is set to intensify.