In a recent poll, likely voters in Pope County, Arkansas voted 54 percent to 39 percent in favor of a proposed $225 million Legends Resort & Casino in Russellville; 60 percent of likely voters in Russellville indicated they support the casino. The Arkansas Tourism Alliance, a nonprofit group backed by Cherokee Nation Businesses, commissioned Impact Research to conduct the poll. The Cherokee tribe is partnered with Legends Hospitality in the venture.
By a 54 percent vote, Arkansas voters approved a constitutional amendment in November 2018 allowing four commercial land-based casinos. The racetracks Southland in West Memphis and Oaklawn in Hot Springs became full-scale casinos and the Quapaw Nation of Oklahoma opened Saracen Casino Resort in Jefferson County.
However, Pope County was one of the 11 out of 64 counties that rejected the constitutional amendment and lawsuits and countersuits have delayed a summer groundbreaking for Legends under a permit granted to the Cherokee Nation. The Choctaw Nation is funding a campaign by Fair Play for Arkansas to stop any casino in Pope County. The group claims the state should not be allowed to impose a casino on residents who oppose gambling. Fair Play hopes to place another ballot referendum before voters to remove Pope County as a location for casino gambling.
But Arkansas Tourism Alliance officials contend the new poll proves voter opinions have changed. Impact Research Partner Zac McCrary said, “It’s not often voters admit to changing their minds, but this data clearly shows a significant shift in sentiment since 2018, with a majority of Pope County voters now in favor of the casino resort project. Moreover, this data explicitly contradicts the current petition effort that seeks to eliminate the Pope County casino license on the sole premise that local voters don’t want it in their community.”
