Economy hovers over Ohio casino referendum vote

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The best way to solve Ohio’s 10 percent unemployment rate was at the heart of Tuesday’s election as voters decided whether to reverse their two-decade old opposition to gambling and support casinos and potential new jobs.

A proposed constitutional amendment to allow casinos in Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati and Toledo was the top issue this campaign season.

Backers say it could produce 40,000 full-time and part-time jobs; critics, however, are dubious of that position.

It’s the most divisive election day topic; more was spent in the state on the gambling proposal than during 2008’s hotly contested presidential contest.

It is the fifth gambling proposal Ohio voters have seen in 20 years. They roundly rejected the others. Ohio would become the 39th state to legalize casinos if the measure were approved and would join neighboring casino states Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

Elizabeth Groen, 56, voting in the Cincinnati suburb of Anderson Township Tuesday morning, supports casinos.

“They are going everywhere else,” Groen said. “It’s time that Ohio gets on board.”

But at a Columbus polling location blocks away from a proposed casino site, Chris Protopapas said he voted against the casino on moral grounds.

“By approving them, it gives tacit approval to the activities, which end up being harmful to society,” said Protopapas, 53, a self-described libertarian.

Voting was quiet around Ohio with few problems being reported.

Two other statewide issues were also on the ballot.

Issue 1 would pay bonuses of up to $1,000 to war veterans who served in the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan and Iraq. Issue 2 seeks to create a new state board to oversee livestock care. Farm interests seeking to avoid legislation sought by animal rights activists proposed the board.

Several big-city mayor’s seats are up for election as well, including those in Cincinnati and Cleveland.

The casino campaign has been particularly nasty, fueled by tens of millions in spending by gambling rivals Penn National Gaming and MTR Gaming Inc. and their friends.

The ballot issue asks voters to amend the Ohio Constitution on such casino issues as the parcels on which casinos could be built; how to distribute a 33 percent casino tax to counties, cities, schools and gambling regulation and addiction services; and the combined $300 million in ongoing state license fees and minimum initial investments required for each facility.

The Ohio Jobs & Growth Committee commissioned a University of Cincinnati study that found casinos would create almost 40,000 full-time and temporary jobs. Labor unions that have opposed gambling issues in the past were convinced by the issue’s key backer, Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, that the promise of jobs were legitimate and offered key grassroots support.

TruthPAC, which opposes casinos, has fought back aggressively. The group has suggested in ads, flyers, media campaigns and news conferences that the job figures are exaggerated, the backers’ business motives are suspect and the proposed tax formula is unfair.

The University of Cincinnati jobs study predicted 39,251 jobs and $4 billion in overall economic impact from the four casino sites. The social costs of expanded gambling were not considered.

Associated Press Writer Meghan Barr contributed to this report from Columbus and Associated Press writer Lisa Cornwell contributed from Cincinnati.