A poll conducted in California on internet gambling shows that most California voters are ready to add sports betting to be legalised in the Golden State, but they are split on whether the state should allow residents to play poker over the Internet.
Both proposals are the subject of pending legislation. A bill that would allow sports betting if Congress or the courts lifted the federal restrictions on it has passed the Senate & one Assembly committee. But a measure to legalise online poker stalled at its first committee hearing last month.
The poll found that 58% of Californian voters support the legalisation of sports betting, with 35% opposing the idea.
There is a more reserved attitude toward internet poker, however; where 49% of respondents were for the concept but 45% were against it.
Mark DiCamillo who’s company conducted the poll, said voters seem receptive to the trade when it comes to sports betting, but are more cautious about letting people play poker – & potentially losing big – without ever leaving the house.
The latest poll shows a slight decline in support for the introduction of online poker since the last poll, conducted in September 2011, which found that 53% of registered voters want to licence & regulate online poker & have the state tax its proceeds, & 41% opposed it.
Support for the idea is higher among Democrats, independents & men. Republicans & women are more concerned about the possible impact of online poker, according to the poll. There’s also a major age difference, with older voters far more opposed than the younger generations, which are more comfortable online.
The Field poll contrasts markedly from one published by the Poker Association last month, finding that 76 percent of voters favoured regulating & taxing online poker, spokesman Ryan Hightower said.
Voters said they support online poker because of the revenue it will generate for California's economy, he advised.
The Field poll was conducted between June 21-July 2 among 997 voters. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.
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