Kentucky Poll Shows Voters In Favor Of Expanded Gambling

The state of Kentucky is heavily invested with their horse racing industry, and another recent poll shows that Kentuckians are in favor of helping the industry through this financially challenged time. The poll indicates that a majority of Kentucky voters are in favor of expanded gambling in the state.

The Kentucky Poll was conducted by research 2000 earlier this month. The poll asked several different questions regarding the state of Kentucky, and one question in particular dealt with gambling.

When asked whether they would be in favor of slot machine gambling expansion at Kentucky racetracks, forty-five percent of the respondents said yes. Their other options were expanding sales tax, closing tax loopholes for businesses, and cuts to education and health programs. Only thirty percent of those polled chose the three options outside of gambling.

"The state of Kentucky needs to find some way to bridge the budget deficit, and lawmakers have been exploring gambling expansion as a solution," said Gaming Analyst Steve Schwartz. "With that in mind, it seems logical that Kentucky residents would be behind gambling expansion over increased taxes."

Governor Steve Beshear has been heavily involved with gambling issues for the past year. Last summer, Beshear attempted unsuccessfully to seize the domain names of 141 online gambling websites. Late last year and into 2010, Beshear has been lobbying legislators to add slots to state tracks.

The Kentucky Derby was held last weekend and even the premier event in the racing industry was not enough to revive the tracks. Lawmakers are searching for ways outside of expanded gambling to help keep the racing industry above water during the economic recovery in the US.

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