Election Day Roundup

In a close Kentucky governor's race separated by about 5,000 votes, Andy Beshear, the Democratic challenger and current state attorney general, has unseated Republican incumbent Matt Bevin.

Beshear, whose platform included pro-gaming planks, declared victory Tuesday night.

Bevin, as of 3 p.m. Wednesday, has not conceded the Election Day voting, and a recount could be in the offing.

But Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes told the Louisville Courier-Journal Wednesday morning that her office had already called the race for Beshear, on the belief that the vote difference cannot be made up by Bevin.

Andy Beshear's father, Steve Beshear, served as Kentucky's governor from 2007 to 2015. When Bevin was elected governor in 2015, he vowed to undo many of the decisions and changes his predecessor had put into place.

One of those reversals by Bevin was to abolish the Kentucky Horse Park Commission (KHPC) and replace it with his own hand-picked board. Andy Beshear's mother, Jane Beshear, was one of the members who got axed from her unpaid KHPC position.

A pre-election statement sheet distributed by Beshear's campaign touted that his administration would be “committed to expanding gaming opportunities in Kentucky to support our pension funds. Gaming revenue will grow the economy and we will direct 100% of the tax revenue to fund the pension system for public servants like teachers and first responders. These new opportunities will include legalizing casinos, capitalizing on fantasy sports, sports betting, and preparing for online poker.”

Casino.org noted that while Beshear didn't directly mention expanded gaming in his remarks to supporters on Tuesday night, he did say that bridging the gap in pension funding for state workers is a top priority. “We will be ready for that first day in office, and I look forward to it,” the governor-elect said.

Beyond historical horse race (HHR) gaming, Kentucky does not have any commercial casinos.

New Track in Texas?

Voters in Jefferson County, Texas, passed two separate measures on Tuesday related to horse betting: A proposition to legalize pari-mutuel betting on live horse races passed by a 54.9% to 49.1% margin. A proposition to legalize pari-mutuel simulcast betting passed by a 52.8% to 47.1% margin. The vote counts were reported by the ABC television affiliate 12NewsNow.

Jefferson county is in southeast Texas adjacent to the Louisiana border.

Kevin Johnson, a consultant for the group that wants to bring horse racing to Jefferson County, told the TV station that an exact location for the track has not yet been finalized and that state-level approval is still required before the project can be green-lighted.

He added that the ownership group plans on funding the track itself with no financial assistance from the county.

Ford Park, a 221-acre multi-purpose park, arena, exhibit hall, pavilion, and midway located along Interstate 10 in Beaumont, has been mentioned as a possible location.

Beaumont is 37 miles west of Delta Downs in Louisiana.

“Delta Downs, if you remove the casino side, for years operated as a racetrack. That's what we're looking at on this particular track,” Johnson told the Port Arthur News two weeks prior to the election. “This will be horse racing and simulcast, full-blown Quarterhorse and Thoroughbred racing.”

Elsewhere in the nation…

Voters in Danville, Virginia, approved a measure to allow pari-mutuel betting in the city, which will likely pave the way for Colonial Downs Group to open a Rosie's Gaming Emporium there that will feature HHR machines and simulcast wagering.

The vote was 51.8% to 48.1%, according to the Martinsville Bulletin.

In Colorado, legalized sports betting has squeaked by, gaining approval by only a 1% margin. The Coloradoan late Wednesday afternoon quoted the Secretary of State's Office on the vote tally, which it reported as not being close enough to trigger the half-percent “automatic recount” threshold.