Spending on Missouri ballot measures nears $100 million as campaign enters final week

As issue campaigns fill airwaves with ads, statewide candidates are running on the smallest campaign budgets in years

BY:  RUDI KELLER
Missouri Independent

After trying to convince voters that legalized sports betting would boost Missouri education funding, the campaign for Amendment 2 is now focused on the fact that residents already bet in large numbers and allowing it in the state will capture some of the revenue, a spokesman said Monday.

Winning for Missouri Education, the committee promoting Amendment 2 on next Tuesday’s ballot, reported Monday that it has raised $40.25 million since beginning its initiative campaign in January. That is $9 million more than the most expensive ballot issue campaign in state history — the $31 raised by supporters of a 2006 proposal to protect stem cell research.

The campaign provided data from GeoComply showing that the 216,000 mobile sports betting accounts in the state made 11.1 million attempts to place a bet between Sept. 5, the opening day of the NFL season, and Oct. 21. GeoComply is a geofencing company that contracts with gambling companies to block illegal bets. 

And on opening day, when the Kansas City Chiefs hosted the Baltimore Ravens, there were nearly 21,000 geolocation checks in and around Arrowhead Stadium.

“The numbers are really staggering,” said Jack Cardetti, spokesman for Winning for Missouri Education.

The final pre-election campaign finance reports for state races were due Monday at the Missouri Ethics Commission. The reports cover the period Oct. 1 through Oct. 24.

Tracking by The Independent shows that spending on ballot measure campaigns in Missouri this year so far is $95 million, including about $15.8 million for initiatives to get on the ballot. 

The spending by statewide candidates reported so far is just under $130 million, including the $65 million spent by Republicans in the primaries and $44.9 million spent in the U.S. Senate race between incumbent Josh Hawley, Democratic nominee Lucas Kunce and Better Party candidate Jared Young. 

Less than half of the Senate race spending has been for the fall campaign.

The two gambling measures account for almost $59 million of the total ballot measure spending, with the Amendment 3 abortion rights initiative accounting for $31 million more.

The enormous bank account for Winning for Missouri Education, with the cost evenly split between DK Crown Holdings, owner of DraftKings, and BetFair Interactive, owner of FanDuel, has purchased $18.1 million of broadcast ads, $1.5 million in digital ads and $1.2 million in direct mail.

A $14 million opposition campaign, funded by Caesars Entertainment, attacked Amendment 2 as misleading because the funding it promises for education programs is uncertain. The gambling companies could deduct promotional bets used to lure new customers as well as federal taxes from their take before calculating state taxes.

That campaign, called Missourians Against the Deceptive Online Gambling Amendment, abruptly pulled its television ads on Oct. 17. The campaign’s final pre-election report shows it had $5 million on hand on Oct. 24, but it does not indicate the campaign is shutting down operations.

In an earlier report, the campaign stated it had purchased $612,000 in direct mail opposing Amendment 2 and $1.5 million on digital media. The current report does not show any refunds from those amounts.

Campaign spokesperson Brooke Foster could not be reached for comment.

The opposition campaign is one reason the pro-sports betting initiative is making the fact that betting is legal in every state on Missouri’s border except Oklahoma a big part of its final argument.

“Missourians know that whether or not they participate in sports betting or not, that it’s here to stay, and that Missouri currently gets zero benefit out of it,” Cardetti said. “And I think that is one of the most unifying messages that the amendment has.”

The other gambling proposal is Amendment 5, which would authorize a new casino near the Lake of the Ozarks. Supporters of that measure, Bally’s Corp. and a Lake-area developer, have spent $10.3 million promoting it. There is no significant opposition campaign.

Statewide races

The Missouri governor’s race continues to be one of the least expensive fall campaigns in years for the state’s top office.

Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe, the Republican nominee, has reported spending only $1.5 million for the fall from his campaign account, while a PAC he helps raise money called American Dream has spent $1.8 million. The two committees combined to spend $17.1 million in the primary.

State Rep. Crystal Quade of Springfield, the Democratic candidate, has spent $1.1 on the fall campaign and her affiliated committee, CrystalPAC, has spent just under $100,000. That is about the same amount Quade spent in the primary.

In other statewide contests:

1. David Wasinger, the Republican candidate for lieutenant governor, reported raising $28,688 in the period and spending $7,803. He has spent $35,856 on the fall campaign after spending $2.7 million in the primary. His Democratic opponent, state Rep. Richard Brown of Kansas City, had not filed his report by late Monday afternoon.
2. Democratic secretary of state candidate Barbara Phifer continued to outraise her Republican rival, Denny Hoskins. Phifer raised $53,072 and SAFE Missouri, a PAC supporting her, raised $20,500 more. Hoskins raised $29,735. His PAC, Old Drum Conservative PAC, has not reported by Monday afternoon.
3. State Treasurer Vivek Malek reported $78,531 in spending since the primary and his affiliated committee, American Promise PAC, has spent just under $8,000. His campaign spent $2.6 million in the primary and his PAC spent $3.2 million. Democratic candidate Mark Osmack has reported raising $63,535 and spending $51,583 for the entire year.
4. Attorney General Andrew Bailey, a Republican, reported raising $193,395 in the period compared to $63,184 for his Democratic rival, Elad Gross. Bailey has spent just under $150,000 for the fall campaign after spending $1.4 million for the primary. Gross has spent $345,000 for the entire year. Bailey’s affiliated committee, Liberty and Justice PAC, had not reported by late afternoon. It spent $5.3 million helping Bailey win the primary.

Until the election, campaigns will be required to file daily reports of contributions. New spending reports will also be filed when significant amounts are expended.