Arkansas casino ballot question gets state supreme court okay

Arkansas voters will have their say on whether to legalize casino gambling in the state, after the state’s highest court struck down a pair of legal challenges by casino opponents.

On Thursday, the Arkansas Supreme Court dismissed two lawsuits seeking to block the casino question on this November’s election ballot. The question, known as Issue 4, asks voters whether they want to amend the state constitution to okay two new casinos and expand gaming options at two existing racetrack casinos.

Issue 4 was installed on the ballot following a petition drive by Driving Arkansas Forward (DAF), a lobby group funded by two Oklahoma tribal groups, the Quapaw tribe’s Downstream Development Authority and the Cherokee Nation Businesses LLC.

Issue 4 was challenged by Ensuring Arkansas’ Future, a rival lobby group consisting largely of faith-based groups who claimed the question’s wording was ambiguous and forced voters to “speculate” on what voting ‘yes’ would mean for the state.