Arkansas Supreme Court to expedite hearing on casino ballot question

Sunday, August 11, 2024 2:26 PM
Photo:  Cherokee Nation Entertainment (courtesy)
  • Alex Kienlen, KARK-TV

The Arkansas Supreme Court has agreed to expedite its review of the ballot initiative aiming to remove the Pope County casino.

The court agreed with a July 31 petition to review the ballot question that would remove the licensed casino in a Friday afternoon order. The petition by the Arkansas Canvassing Compliance Committee (ACCC) claims that Local Voters in Charge, the group sponsoring a ballot initiative to remove Pope County from the list of places authorized to have a casino, broke Arkansas election laws.

ACCC, joined by Cherokee Nation Entertainment, LLC, the casino’s license holder, states that most of the signatures gathered to get the question on the ballot are invalid and that the popular name and ballot title are misleading.