West Virginia Residents Vote in Favor of Slots
West Virginia is looking to expand its gambling. It already offers slot machines throughout the state and is benefiting from the vast possibilities for revenue the games offer. Now the state is trying to make a push for bringing table games in. The problem is that bringing them in hasn’t been as seamless as the state hoped. Various counties within the state left the decision of bring in table games to the voting public and they have voiced much opposition to the move. It was a surprise for most legislators who thought that the voters would be much more supportive of the move. They believed that there would only be a small fraction of the state’s voters who denied the approval.
One victory for the state however was a recent vote that was taken in which residents allowed roulette wheels and craps tables along side slot machines at Charles Town Races and Slots. Voters said that one of the biggest draws for them was the ability to have around 500 more jobs come in, and they say that in this economy that this is really important. It seems that job creation is the most important impetus to allowing expansion of slots and other forms of gambling in general. People are also aware that the amount of money that the slot machines are already bringing in, and they know that there is much more to be made from the table games as well, so they were confident in making the decision that it was the right one for the state. The depressed economy was a major concern for the voting public and a major reason why they decided the way they did. Legislators were hoping for the positive reaction to slots and gambling.
The Jefferson County vote was about double the number of people voting for slots and gambling as voted against them. That means that a good majority of voters will support future efforts to bring gambling to the state. 2010 should be a prime year to watch the developments of gambling in West Virginia. It may be a good model for successfully bringing gambling to a state as a means of revenue generation.
Tags: slots, vote, West Virginia
