Pope County has been issued a commercial casino license that could be revoked by the Arkansas Supreme Court. The likelihood of this happening is very high. County voters are expected to be able to vote on the issue in a referendum. if that is what the court ruling is. Behind the case is a legal fight between two tribes in Oklahoma.
Arkansas Secretary of State John Thurston approved the referendum back in August, with the vote itself set to take place in November. However, Cherokee Nation Entertainment appealed – and that’s what necessitated the Supreme Court’s intervention. The charges were expedited because the scheduled date for the referendum is so close.
Early voting in Missouri begins two weeks before Election Day, with the next round of briefings due by Sept. 26. The court said it will issue its decision shortly after considering each side’s claims.
Cherokee Nation Entertainment was declared the winner in the fight for Pope County’s casino license in June. This was due to the fact that it was the only one to fulfill all the requirements.
Pope County was chosen as the site for a commercial casino following a statewide referendum in 2018 that authorized gambling in four counties. However, voters in that county voted against the referendum results. Local Voters in Charge, a company that is funded by Choctaw Nation, believes that casinos should only be in counties that want them. That’s likely due to a desire to protect its interests in Eastern Oklahoma, though.
Cherokee Nation. in turn, accuses the competitors of having committed a large number of procedural violations in collecting signatures. Specifically, the Cherokee Nation alleges that canvassers were paid based on how many signatures they collected. According to a court source, it is likely that the outcome of the trial will most likely be in favor of Cherokee Nation Entertainment.
The plan for the casino, if built, calls for a 50,000-square-foot gaming floor with 1,200 slot machines, 32 live dealer gaming tables and a betting room. The 200-room hotel will be complemented by several restaurants and bars, and there will also be 15,000 square feet of meeting space, a resort pool and an outdoor music venue.
Material created with the support of Megaparipromocode
