Alabama Lottery Referendum (posted October 15, 1999)

The stunning rejection by Alabama voters of a proposed state lottery has sent shockwaves through national gambling circles. Even though anti-gambling forces were outspent by a three-to-one margin ($3 million by pro-lottery groups and $1 million by Citizens Against Legalized Lottery), citizens voted 54 to 46 percent against Alabama moving to a lottery. The election result was a surprise given that state leaders had targeted lottery proceeds on programs to improve the state's education system and that Governor Don Siegelman had made lottery passage the centerpiece of his election campaign in 1998.

News reports from the Mobile Register newspaper suggest four key reasons for the defeat:

1) voters did not trust politicians to spend the money wisely and manage the lottery

2) citizens were not convinced new revenues actually would be used to fund education

3) religious organizations turned out opponents in record number

4) effective attack ads undermined public support for the initiative

Using searing attack ads from Citizens Against Legalized Lottery, pro-lottery forces were unable to build support for their ballot measure. One ad run by CALL showed "good ol' boy political cronies puffing cigars and pushing around lottery cash," all designed to persuade voters not to trust politicians to manage the lottery. Taking advantage of political mistrust and church arguments that it was time to "put the brakes on a downward spiral to a gambling-obsessed society," anti-lottery forces pulled off the upset of the year.