Poll About Gambling in Texas – Interesting Facts Revealed

Gambling-focused polls tend to point out important wagering preferences in countries or states. They are especially useful when legislators are planning to introduce some changes in the gaming system. This is why they conducted a poll about gambling in the state of Texas lately. The state, which has one of the strictest regulations on the issue.

The so-called Bexar Facts-KSAT-San Antonio 2021 Q1 poll was conducted among the residents of Bexar County, Texas. The results of the survey show that most of the participants support gambling expansion in the state. But there was another – a stranger – issue that came up: most of the responders also endorse the legalization of the recreational use of marijuana. However, for us and gamblers it is more important what the poll has to do about gambling in Texas.

Illegal gambling in the Lone Star State

As we mentioned above, the regulation in Texas is very strict considering gambling activities. According to the Texas State Law Library under the law (Penal Code §47.02) gambling is considered a criminal offense if someone: ”makes a bet on the partial or final result of a game or contest or the performance of a participant in a game or contest”. Or ”makes a bet on the result of any political nomination, appointment, or election or the degree of success of any nominee, appointee, or candidate. And also when someone ”plays and bets for money or other thing of value at any game played with cards, dice, balls, or any other gambling device.”

Of course, there are some reasonable exceptions. These are: participating in the state lottery or placing bets on horse and greyhound dog races (these are usually referred to as pari-mutuel wagering). ”The law also provides for some affirmative defenses to prosecution: the actor engaged in gambling in a private place, or no person received any economic benefit other than personal winnings; and except for the advantage of skill or luck, the risks of losing and the chances of winning were the same for all participants.” Bearing all these in mind, it is not s surprise that the state would like to take some step forward with a looser regulation. The poll about gambling in Texas is a great first step on this way.

Legal gambling in Texas

Legal forms of gambling in the U.S. state of Texas include the Texas Lottery; parimutuel wagering on horse and greyhound racing; charitable bingo, pull-tabs, and raffles; and three Indian casinos. Also, the laws do not expressly forbid online wagering, so residents can try their luck on offshore sites. There are several online gambling sites in the US as well that love to entertain residents from the state. And the poll about gambling in Texas revealed how the residents stand on the question. These all show that change is already in the air! And one thing is for sure: operators, online sportsbook sites in the US, like Bovada, residents, and the state would all benefit from some renovations.

Poll About Gambling in Texas

So far, there have been several attempts to expand gambling in Texas, but all of them have failed. (It is also the same for recreational marijuana use.) However, the residents of the state are still all in for it! The results from KSAT’s latest poll, published by several online gambling news sites in the US, show that clearly. In total 618 Bexar County residents participated in the poll. About 60% of them showed gambling support – and for recreational marijuana use as well. So, it is strange that the regulations still have not answered their needs – no matter how many times they tried to loosen them. And no matter how bad the state needs some growth in tax incomes.

Going into details, 37% of the participants strongly support legalizing and taxing gambling for adults. An additional 26% somewhat support the proposal, which altogether gives 63%. In contrast, only 32% opposed the case and 5% said they do not know. It means that if the legislators of the Lone Star State respond to the requisitions of its residents, they can try to act on them again – maybe with success this time. And with that, operators like Bovada could enter the state!

You can discover more about Bovada Sportsbook here.