Florida Sports Betting Initiative Still Lacking Signatures

The Florida Sports Betting Initiative is over 600,000 verified signatures short of the required amount to appear on the 2022 general election ballot.
Florida Education Champions, the backer of the ballot initiative, must submit the remaining signatures by early January in order to finish the lengthy verification process.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Time is running out for Florida Education Champions – backers of the Florida Sports Betting Initiative – to compile and verify the necessary signatures for the initiative to appear on the 2022 general election ballot.

Florida Sports Betting Initiative Short On Signatures, Time

According to the Florida Division of Elections, the Florida Sports Betting Initiative has received 233,527 verified signatures, with an unknown amount still awaiting verification. In order to appear on the 2022 ballot, the measure must receive a total of 891,589 verified signatures.

Florida Education Champions have until February 1, 2022 to compile and verify the over 600,000 remaining signatures that are necessary for the initiative to appear on the 2022 ballot. If the signatures are not verified by that date, they will not be considered.

It can take up to a month for the signatures to be verified (all signatures must undergo the verification process within 30 days by law), so the signatures will have to be submitted for the verification process within the first few days of January.

There are a total of 33 currently active ballot initiatives in the state of Florida, each of which will need to undergo the lengthy verification process – this may create some problems, as even if Florida Education Champions gathers the requisite amount of signatures, they may not be verified in time for the initiative to appear on the ballot.

What Is The Florida Sports Betting Initiative?

The Florida Sports Betting Initiative would officially regulate legal sports betting in Florida. The initiative authorizes Florida’s pari-mutuel facilities and professional sports stadiums to offer in-person sports betting. To complement the in-person sports betting, the bill would also authorize online sports betting through authorized commercial sportsbooks and Florida’s native tribes with an active gaming compact.

Under the Florida Sports Betting Initiative, the Florida legislature would be authorized to levy taxes on legal sports betting revenue, all of which would be allocated to the state educational trust fund.

According to the Florida Division of Elections, the Florida Sports Betting Initiative has been backed financially by both FanDuel and DraftKings. DraftKings donated approximately $22.7 million to Florida Education Champions for the initiative, while FanDuel contributed about $14.4 million for the initiative.

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Jerad Paparella

Jerad has been a welcomed addition to the LegalSportsBetting.com writing team. Covering topics regarding the expansion of sports betting in the US, Jerad focuses on legislative efforts, bill signings and other methods for sports betting legalization. Finishing his education as a college baseball player, Jerad has first-hand knowledge of competitive sports, paired with years of personal sports betting as well. As a political science major at the University of Central Florida, Jerad covers the political, legal, and legislative aspects of sports gambling without any issues.