Opponents of a sports betting constitutional amendment on Missouri’s November ballot on Thursday, just as the group promoting the proposal launched a new ad featuring popular St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Ozzie Smith. Canceled more than $1 million in television advertising.
Missourians Against Deceptive Online Gambling Amendments has launched nearly $4 million worth of TV ads against the Second Amendment, according to The Independent, which tracked the stations’ reports to the Federal Communications Commission. Indicates that the program was aired or reserved.
Thursday’s cancellation removed $1.2 million of those ads, some of which had been purchased weeks earlier.
Brooke Foster, spokeswoman for Missourians Against Deceptive Online Gambling Amendment, said the ads will be removed to move the campaign toward more direct contact.
“While out-of-state online gambling companies continue to spend millions of dollars on misleading TV ads, we are committed to grassroots efforts and community dialogue during the remaining two weeks and one week until Election Day. “I decided to focus on it,” she said. By email.
Since the commission was established on September 10, it has received $14.2 million from casinos in Missouri owned by Caesars Entertainment. In a $2.7 million TV ad that actually aired, the campaign capitalized on skepticism about how tax dollars from gambling are spent, with more than $100 million spent on education programs in the first five years. This casts doubt on whether that promise will be fulfilled.
Caesars is the only one of Missouri’s six licensed casino operators to actively oppose the ballot measure. One aspect the company dislikes is that it can obtain a license for its online gambling platform without establishing a business relationship with a casino in Missouri.
The victory for the Missouri State Board of Education, a pro-Second Amendment committee, is the highest-funded ballot measure campaign in the state’s history. The two largest online bookmakers, FanDuel and DraftKings, each contributed $15.8 million, and the TV and radio advertising campaign has cost nearly $10 million so far. Ads supporting sports betting emphasize that the Missouri Constitution directs all revenue from gambling taxes to educational programs.
Jack Caldetti, a spokesperson for Winning for Missouri Education, declined to say why he believes the ad was removed.
“That’s something you have to ask them,” Cardetti said. “We’re focused on the campaign and making sure our message gets across. We’re really happy with where we are right now.”
In an August Saint Louis University/YouGov poll, 50% of voters surveyed said they supported sports betting after reading the Second Amendment ballot language, while 30% opposed it. Foster said last week that anti-Second Amendment television ads that began airing in the first week of September had narrowed the gap.
“It’s definitely toned up,” she said. “It’s close to the margin of error, so I’m really happy to see that.”
This week’s victory for Missouri Education increased some TV purchases and began highlighting support for the measure from professional sports teams. Professional sports teams will be able to establish sports betting retail outlets and offer branded online platforms.
“The Second Amendment Campaign will continue to aggressively get our message out and make sure Missourians know the benefits of legalizing sports betting until the very last moment,” Cardetti said in a statement. .
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