It’s official: Missouri sports betting will appear on the 2024 ballot this Election Day.
A petition submitted by Winning for Missouri Education had enough signatures ratified by the Missouri Secretary of State Tuesday. This was seen as a formality, but it was a necessary step en route to legal sports betting possibly becoming a reality in the Show-Me State.
More on the Missouri sports betting legalization process
State laws require petitions to have approximately 170,000 signatures in order to make a ballot. These signatures must be ratified by the Secretary of State ahead of each year’s elections, and Tuesday was the official deadline.
The Winning for Missouri Education petition garnered roughly 340,000 signatures. That’s twice the threshold, so there wasn’t much nail-biting happening ahead of Tuesday’s official decision.
With this decision made, voters now have another matter to ponder this Election Day. The vote is set for Tuesday, Nov. 5. Should this initiative be supported by a majority, Missouri sports betting may launch as early as mid-2025.
A long history of failure
Missouri sports betting has been considered during the state’s legislative sessions for the last several years. A few bills have made headway, but they’ve been stymied in the state Senate.
The chief obstructionist to these efforts has been outgoing Sen. Denny Hoskins, who has used his power to help block the passage of several pieces of legislation. Unlike most of his colleagues, Hoskins believes Missouri sports betting legislation should also include language regarding video lottery terminals (or VLTs).
Unsurprisingly, Hoskins was critical of the measure proposed in the petition. Specifically, he cited the potential tax rate for sports betting operators in Missouri. At 10%, that would be one of the lowest tax rates in the entire country.
Hoskins, however, is term-limited, and will not be part of the 2025 legislative session early next year. If this measure does not pass in November, sports betting will almost certainly be considered by the Missouri House and Senate just a few months later. That’s not a guarantee that a bill will become law, but these discussions will happen without a major roadblock present.
