Casino Lobby Pours Millions Into North Texas Senate Race

The casino industry is betting big on a single Texas Senate race, making a low-key special election one of the state’s most-watched political battles.

Casino Money Takes Center Stage in North Texas Senate Contest

Former Southlake Mayor John Huffman, a Republican running in the November 4 special election for Senate District 9, has gotten a huge amount of money from groups linked to Las Vegas Sands, the worldwide casino company owned by billionaire Dr. Miriam Adelson.

Campaign records from Texas show that the Texas Sands PAC, which acts as the political branch of Las Vegas Sands, gave $500,000 to Huffman’s campaign towards the end of September. In addition, the Texas Defense PAC, which gets almost all its money from Adelson, has used nearly $600,000 for ads to support his run. When you add up the money given and spent by groups linked to Las Vegas Sands, it makes up about 94% of the funds for Huffman’s campaign, according to Texans for Fiscal Responsibility.

Political watchers say the casino company’s involvement shows a long-range plan to get clout in Austin after years of failed attempts to make casino gambling legal in Texas. One observer remarked that the casino lobby’s efforts were not limited to a single race but were instead aimed at gaining ground for future legislative battles.

 Special Election Turns Into Vote on Gambling’s Role in Texas Politics

Las Vegas Sands has pushed for years to bring resort-style casinos to Texas, saying that more gaming would create tax money, jobs, and keep gambling cash from going to nearby states like Oklahoma and Louisiana. The firm, which runs big places in Macau and Singapore, wants to set up a main casino resort in the Dallas area.

Huffman, who calls himself a fiscal conservative, says his view on gambling has not shifted. He believes Texans, not politicians, should choose whether to allow casinos. He suggests limiting any expansion to a few controlled resorts. He is also against widespread slot machines and uncontrolled electronic gaming, claiming these activities damage communities.

His Republican rival, Leigh Wambsganss, stands against any type of gambling growth. She claims that casino funds are twisting the race and cautions voters about choosing candidates supported by one wealthy special interest group. Wambsganss also shrugs off the critique connecting her family to gaming investments, stating she played no part in her husband’s earlier business deals.

The race to fill the seat of former Senator Kelly Hancock, who stepped down earlier this year, has turned into a stand-in fight about gambling’s future in Texas. As early voting kicks off on October 20, the opposing camps are portraying the election as a gauge of whether the state’s long-time opposition to casinos is beginning to weaken or standing strong against pressure from one of the globe’s mightiest gaming empires.