Newly approved casino gambling in Nebraska positions Lincoln Race Course to rake in visitors because of its new seven-furlong horse racetrack, populous home and lack of local competition, the track's top official said Wednesday.
"Lincoln will probably be the crown jewel of the state out of the gate," said Mike Newlin of Omaha Exposition and Racing, which runs Lincoln Race Course along with Horsemen's Park in Omaha.Â
Property available adjacent to Lincoln Race Course could house a hotel and steakhouse to draw from traffic to live racing, simulcast racing and casino gambling new to the market, he said.Â
Lincoln Race Course estimates casino gambling could generate 1,500 jobs, $100 million in local economic impact and $15 million in state and local tax revenue, with some profits from slot machines and table games turned back to support the state's horse racing industry.
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With the bright lights of an adjacent casino, the track off U.S. 77 and West Denton Road could go from hosting a couple of live races a year to running full race cards on as many as 60 days annually, officials said.Â
Still, Newlin said the track doesn't have the blueprints drawn up yet for where and how many slot machines and table games to install, and he doesn't anticipate casino gambling in Lincoln until late next year.
Two of every three voters in Tuesday's election approved the ballot initiatives necessary to authorize casino gambling at licensed racetracks in the state and to tax the revenue. Support in Lancaster County virtually mirrored the statewide vote, with backing at 65%.
Initiative 429 lost in mostly rural counties located two or more hours from existing casinos in border states.
Ho-Chunk Inc. President and CEO Lance Morgan told the Sioux City (Iowa) Journal that his company, the economic development arm of the Winnebago tribe, is prepared to spend $300 million to open casinos at tracks in South Sioux City, Omaha and Lincoln.
The company owns Atokad, the South Sioux City track, and would manage the gaming in Omaha and Lincoln, he said.
Ho-Chunk led the Keep the Money in Nebraska push that got the three measures on the ballot, an effort that needed a Nebraska Supreme Court ruling to reject an attempt by Nebraska Secretary of State Bob Evnen to nullify the ballot initiative on procedural grounds.
Fonner Park CEO Chris Kotulak said the margin of approval shows voters are fed up with money leaving the state for neighboring casinos in South Dakota, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri.Â
He believes casino gambling revenue will allow the Grand Island track to attract fuller fields for its live races by holding onto current trainers and enticing new horsemen to run horses in Nebraska with bigger purses.
In the last two years, Fonner Park had focused its efforts on getting historical horse racing terminals installed, an effort that got shot down in court.Â
The next step to usher in the dinging and flashing of slot machines and chip stacking on blackjack tables rests with Gov. Pete Ricketts, who opposed the three ballot measures.Â
In a statement Wednesday, Ricketts said he had tasked his staff with reviewing the ballot measures and exploring how to proceed.Â
“Nebraska will respect the will of the people and the decision they made on Election Day,†the governor said.
Initiative 429 authorizes gambling at licensed horse tracks in the state, which also include Ag Park in Columbus and Fairplay Park in Hastings.
Initiative 430 requires the state to set up a gaming commission and harmonize state law with the newly approved gambling expansion.Â
The governor received criticism for a two-year delay in implementing Medicaid expansion in Nebraska, which 53% of voters approved in 2018.Â
With nearly 70% of voters approving the taxation of casinos and earmarking the bulk of profits for property tax relief, Newlin said supporters made a statement that Ricketts should not drag his feet in this case.Â
"They made their voices heard, and loudly, and I hope the governor hears this," Newlin said.
Gambling measures won big at the polls nationwide Tuesday, with three states authorizing legal sports betting and three others either approving or expanding casino gambling, the Associated Press reported.
Maryland, South Dakota and Louisiana approved sports betting. Similar to Nebraska, Virginia approved casino gambling in four locations, and Colorado expanded the number and type of casino games it can offer.
What Tuesday's vote means for legal sports betting in the state remains a question, since the ballot initiative wasn't specific in authorizing "games of chance."Â
Election results
Lincoln and Nebraska results for the 2020 general election
Statewide contests
Party | Candidate | Vote total |
---|---|---|
President | Joseph Biden, D | 359,757 |
Jo Jorgensen, L | 19,292 | |
Donald Trump, R | 536,229 | |
U.S. Senate | Chris Janicek, D | 216,887 |
Ben Sasse, R | 562,224 | |
Gene Siadek, L | 52,878 | |
Gambling, Initiative 429 | For | 566,886 |
Against | 305,883 | |
Gambling, Initiative 430 | For | 569,201 |
Against | 307,728 | |
Gambling, Initiative 431 | For | 598,546 |
Against | 273,243 | |
Payday lending | For | 698,704 |
Against | 144,346 | |
Remove slavery wording | For | 581,058 |
Against | 271,443 | |
Extend TIF 20 years | For | 500,903 |
Against | 319,675 | |
Congressional races
Race | Candidates | Vote totals |
---|---|---|
District 1 | Kate Bolz | 116,120 |
Jeff Fortenberry, R | 179,557 | |
Dennis Grace, L | 8,452 | |
District 2 | Donald Bacon, R | 162,087 |
Kara Eastman, D | 146,992 | |
Tyler Schaeffer, L | 9,423 | |
District 3 | Mark Elworth Jr., D | 49,771 |
Dustin Hobbs, L | 10,723 | |
Adrian Smith, R | 222,363 | |
Legislature
District | Candidate | Vote totals |
---|---|---|
1 | Janet Palmtag | 5,577 |
Julie Slama | 11,899 | |
3 | Rick Holdcroft | 8,582 |
Carol Blood | 8,779 | |
5 | Mike McDonnell | 6,559 |
Gilbert Ayala | 3,777 | |
7 | Tony Vargas | 6,819 |
Jorge Sotolongo | 1,919 | |
9 | John Cavanaugh | 8,003 |
Marque Snow | 6,690 | |
11 | Fred Conley | 3,330 |
Terrell McKinney | 5,820 | |
13 | Justin T. Wayne | 11,010 |
15 | David Rogers | 6,210 |
Lynne Walz | 9,157 | |
17 | Joni Albrecht | 7,343 |
Sheryl Lindau | 3,576 | |
19 | Mike Flood | 15,200 |
21 | Mike Hilgers | 9,895 |
Brodey Weber | 8,132 | |
23 | Bruce Bostelman | 11,287 |
Helen Raikes | 6,868 | |
25 | Suzanne Geist | 16,147 |
Stephany Pleasant | 8,104 | |
27 | Brenda Bickford | 5,448 |
Anna Wishart | 9,923 | |
29 | Eliot Bostar | 10,927 |
Jacob Campbell | 9,622 | |
31 | Rich Pahls | 10,197 |
Tim Royers | 9,093 | |
33 | Steve Halloran | 12,756 |
35 | Raymond M. Aguilar | 6,570 |
Dan Quick | 5,688 | |
37 | Mercadies Damratowski | 4,098 |
John Lowe Sr. | 12,774 | |
39 | Allison Heimes | 11,457 |
Lou Ann Linehan | 14,554 | |
41 | Tom Briese | 15,804 |
43 | Tom Brewer | 10,628 |
Tanya Storer | 7,691 | |
45 | Susan Hester | 7,671 |
Rita Sanders | 8,835 | |
47 | Steve Erdman | 14,901 |
49 | Jen Day | 12,125 |
Andrew La Grone | 11,873 |
State Board of Education
District | Candidate | Vote total |
---|---|---|
1 | Patsy Koch Johns | 90,917 |
2 | Robert Anthony | 37,612 |
Lisa Fricke | 68,950 | |
3 | Patti S. Gubbels | 51,079 |
Mike Goos | 24,082 | |
4 | Jacquelyn Morrison | 50,569 |
Adrian Petrescu | 17,653 | |
SCC Board of Governors
District | Candidate | Vote totals |
---|---|---|
At-large | Timothy R. Cerveny | 81,405 |
Neal Stenberg | 82,575 | |
1 | Chuck Byers | 17,329 |
Jeanne H. Stec | 15,268 | |
2 | Kathy Boellstorff | 20,349 |
Chad Aldrich | 15,415 | |
3 | Edward C. Price | 32,588 |
4 | Kristin E. Yates | 25,167 |
5 | Arlyn Uhrmacher | 41,327 |
Lower Platte South Natural Resources District board
Subdistrict | Candidate | Vote totals |
---|---|---|
1 | Don Jacobson | 11,941 |
2 | Ron Nolte | 12,778 |
3 | Mike DeKalb | 6,243 |
Kenneth Vogel | 6,177 | |
4 | Gary R. Aldridge | 9,201 |
LeRoy W. Sievers | 9,199 | |
5 | John Yoakum | 4,402 |
Greg Osborn | 2,618 | |
6 | Anthony Schutz | 10,257 |
7 | Chelsea Johnson | 8,933 |
8 | Christine Lamberty | 7,807 |
Christy Eichorn | 4,505 | |
9 | Milt Schmidt | 4,712 |
Lisa Lewis | 7,518 | |
10 | Ray A. Stevens Jr. | 6,528 |
Bastienne Salners | 5,268 | |
Public Service Commission
Race | Candidate | Vote total |
---|---|---|
District 2 | Tim Davis, R | 53,466 |
Crystal Rhoades, D | 88,891 |
NU Board of Regents
District | Candidate | Vote totals |
---|---|---|
1 | Tim Clare | 92,526 |
2 | Jack A. Stark | 96,770 |
County board; unofficial final results
District | Candidate | Vote total |
---|---|---|
2 | Eric Underwood, R | 10,250 |
Christa Yoakum, D | 11,436 | |
4 | Roma Amundson | 25,599 |
Area ballot questions; unofficial final results
Ballot question | For | Against |
---|---|---|
Hickman pool bonds | 491 | 815 |
Hickman sales tax | 484 | 808 |
Hallam sales tax | 60 | 71 |