CENTRAL OHIO -- Both sides in the Issue 3 campaign to bring four casinos to Ohio are spending millions to win, and both sides are backed by casino interests.
Campaign finance reports released Thursday reveal that between July 1 and October 14, the Ohio Jobs and Growth Committee spent $31.8 million to push Issue 3's passage. That amounts to nearly six times the $5.4 million spent by Issue 3 opponent group TruthPAC.
After spending $36 million last year to defeat a different casino proposal, Penn National is bank-rolling roughly half of the pro-Issue 3 tab this year, along with Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert's group.
The two parties would own the four casinos if voters approve Issue 3.
"This is a statewide election, and if you look at the major statewide elections in Ohio you see these kinds of dollars," said Bob Tennenbaum, spokesperson for the Ohio Jobs and Growth Committee. "It's gone up enormously. The cost of running an election has gone up, so yes, it's a lot of money but I don't think it's out of line with a statewide election in Ohio."
On the other side, almost all of the money raised by TruthPAC to defeat Issue 3 is connected to MTR gaming and its chairman, Jeff Jacobs. MTR owns the Mountaineer Casino in West Virginia, as well as Scioto Downs racetrack.
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