WarHorse Omaha Debuts New Expansion
WarHorse Casino in Omaha opened its latest expansion April 22, per Nebraska Public Media. The expansion includes 400 slots, two dining options and a connection from the parking garage to the casino, as well as 130 additional jobs.
Just opened last August, the casino is a partnership between the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska and the Nebraska Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association. According to state figures, WarHorse Omaha has generated $3.8 million in tax revenue so far in 2025.
“The theory is, is we get these open, we start having some success, and we put more and more money back into our community, building homes, creating education, jobs, all of those opportunities,” WarHorse Gaming CEO Lance Morgan told NPM. “You know, we’re already known for doing that in our community, but I think that that’s going to be community development on steroids when these are really going and functioning at full speed.”
Oklahoma Tribe Approved for Gaming License
The United Keetoowah Band (UKB) of Oklahoma received approval for a gaming license from the National Indian Gaming Commission earlier this month, settling a years-long dispute between the UKB and the much larger Cherokee Nation over land rights. The UKB had operated a casino in Tahlequah for years before the Cherokees sued in 2013, forcing the UKB to cease operations.
However, the federal government earlier this year ruled that both tribes have equal rights to the Oklahoma Cherokee Reservation, laying the groundwork for the NIGC approval.
“While additional steps remain before UKB gaming operations resume, the NIGC’s decision affirms what decades of federal law have made clear: Indian Tribes have the right to regulate and conduct gaming on their lands,” UKB Chief Jeff Wacoche told News on 6.
Report: Catawbas Divided on SC Casino Efforts
The Catawba Nation is South Carolina’s only federally recognized tribe, but so far it has not been able to develop and operate a casino in the state. Instead, the Catawbas partnered with developer Wallace Cheves to open the Two Kings casino in neighboring North Carolina. But the relationship between them has become increasingly strained, to the extent that Cheves is now proposing his own South Carolina casino project in Santee and is seeking to pass legislation to make that a reality.
In response, Catawba Chief Brian Harris has lobbied against the casino and bill, arguing that his tribe should have first gaming rights in the state. “We have an inherent right to game in our home state before anyone else,” he recently said in testimony to the state House, per FITSNews.
However, the outlet in its report spoke with other tribal members who disagree with Harris and allege that his attack of the Santee project is simply a vendetta against Cheves. “They’re just trying to stop him at any turn – not do anything themselves,” said Jason Harris, former assistant chief. “If they want it that bad, why hasn’t the chief been working on it?”
“I don’t really object to the casino going in South Carolina – but as long as Brian’s in office I think me and a vast majority of tribal citizens are in fear of how Brian is going to handle it,” added Dwayne Rogers, another former council member. “Obviously we want success, we want to flourish – but it worries me about the leadership and how they may go about doing it. Is it for the tribe? Or is it for personal gain?”
