The Arksana Supreme Court in Little Rock, Arkansas. (Image: Alamy)

The Arkansas Supreme Court on Monday unanimously dismissed part of a lawsuit attempting to get an anti-casino amendment off of the state ballot in November, rejecting a technical argument made by state officials. 

Justice Courtney Hudson authored the decision, which said that an argument presented by Arkansas Secretary of State John Thurston and Attorney General Tim Griffin was incorrect.

Court Rejects Challenges Related to Canvassers, Paperwork

Thurston and Griffin argued that a piece of compliance paperwork related to paying canvassers to collect signatures for Issue 2 – which would invalidate the license for a casino in Pope County and require all future casinos in Arkansas to receive the support of local referendums – was invalid, because it was signed by the wrong individual. 

The Arkansas Supreme Court appointed a special master to review evidence in the case. That individual disagreed with Griffin and Thurston, rejecting both the argument that Local Voters in Charge – the group behind Issue 2 – didn’t submit the required paperwork about paid canvassers, and another argument that the group violated state law by paying canvassers per signature. 

Local Voters in Charge released a statement praising the ruling.

“Issue 2’s message of local voter control – that communities should have the final say on a casino in their own hometown – is resonating across the state,” spokesperson Hans Stiritz said in a statement. 

“We look forward to the court’s final decision on the ballot language challenge, with hope that the vote of the people will be counted on Issue 2 in November.”

That statement references another outstanding claim about Issue 2. Courts have yet to rule on the validity of the measure’s ballot title and popular name, another area in which opponents of the amendment are hoping to invalidate it. 

“While disappointing, we still await the Court’s decision on the ballot title challenge,” Arkansas Canvassing Compliance Committee spokesperson Allison Burum said in a statement. “Issue 2 is misleading, and its sole purpose is to undo the will of Arkansas voters by eliminating the fourth casino license they approved in 2018.”

Tribal Interests Fueling Battle Over Issue 2

While the fight over Issue 2 may be couched in arguments over local control and legal technicalities, it is largely a proxy war between two neighboring tribal groups from Oklahoma who are both looking out for their share of the regional gaming market.

Early this summer, the Arkansas Racing Commission awarded the lone Pope County casino license to Cherokee Nation Entertainment, which presented the only valid proposal under state law. 

However, the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma – which operates casinos near the Arkansas border – quickly moved to prevent the new Pope County casino from being built. The Pope County facility would be located in Russellville, only about 90 minutes from the nearest Choctaw casino.

That led the Choctaw Nation to back Local Voters in Charge, donating $5.6 million to the group and pushing for Issue 2 – ostensibly to require local referendums on new casinos, but more importantly or the Choctaw, also to revoke the Pope County casino license. 

Cherokee Nation Businesses (CNB) responded by funding its own group, known as Investing in Arkansas, to challenge the ballot amendment. CNB has donated $2.8 million to the group in an effort to either stop the question from appearing on the ballot or to defeat it on Election Day.