Tuberville Says He Would Not Block Alabama Gambling Referendum
Alabama's Republican gubernatorial frontrunner says he would let voters decide on legalised gambling, but a cautious legislature and campaign cash from an unregulated sweepstakes operator complicate the picture.
Republican Tommy Tuberville has said he would not obstruct a push to legalise gambling in Alabama if he wins next Tuesday's gubernatorial election, even as a divided state legislature remains the bigger obstacle to any change.
The former Auburn Tigers football coach, who has represented Alabama in the US Senate since 2021, made the comments in an interview with the Capital Journal as he campaigns to succeed term-limited Governor Kay Ivey.
Alabama's constitution bars the legislature from authorising any new form of gambling, including casinos, a state lottery or sports betting. Changing that requires voters to approve a constitutional amendment at the ballot box.
Tuberville said he wanted the governor's office to be involved in shaping any such proposal, saying the governor should "be on top of everything" in putting a gambling package before the public.
"I'm not a gambler, so either way for me would be fine. I want to do what the people of Alabama want to do," he said, adding that he was "not going to go out there and promote it unless we get a complete overview of how we want to do it from day one."
According to Casino.org, Tuberville has received $130,000 in campaign contributions from VGW, the online sweepstakes casino operator behind Chumba Casino, Global Poker and LuckyLand Casino, all of which continue to run in Alabama despite the state's gambling ban.
Getting a referendum onto the ballot is not straightforward. A bill authorising a public vote would need a three-fifths majority in both the Alabama State Senate and the House of Representatives before going to voters, where only a simple majority would be required to pass.
Republicans hold 27 of 35 Senate seats and 76 of 105 House seats in Montgomery, but Casino.org reports that many lawmakers remain opposed to putting the question to voters, citing religious objections, despite polling showing public appetite for a referendum.
The governor's race itself looks closer than once assumed. Democratic-aligned pollster Chism Strategies has Tuberville leading Democratic challenger Doug Jones by just three points, describing the contest as a "genuine toss-up."
Prediction market traders disagree with that assessment. Tuberville's shares of winning the governorship were trading at 93 cents as of 30 October, according to Casino.org.
Alabama has not elected a Democratic governor since Don Siegelman lost to Republican Bob Riley in 2002. Jones, who lost his Senate seat to Tuberville in 2020, has said he would support what Casino.org described as a "comprehensive gambling bill."