Most New Jersey residents oppose in-state college sports betting
A measure to allow in-state college sports betting in New Jersey faces steep oppositions months before Garden State residents are expected to vote on the issue.
Fairleigh Dickinson University released a poll on July 8 that found just 25% of New Jersey voters are in favor of the proposal, which would allow sports bettors to wager on collegiate games taking place in New Jersey or involving state college teams such as Rutgers and Seton Hall.
In-state college sports betting is currently banned in New Jersey, but lawmakers overwhelmingly approved a resolution this summer that would allow voters to allow the activity under a constitutional amendment.
“Supporters are going to need to change a lot of minds if they want to get this passed,” said Dan Cassino, an FDU politics professor who led the poll. “Supporters have to explain what they’re proposing, and hope that voters are going to buy in.”
The poll shows that 49% of voters believe the ban should stay in place, while 23% said they were unsure if the ban should continue. The poll surveyed 803 New Jersey voters by phone between June 9-16. The margin of error was plus or minus 3.46 percentage points.
Support for in-state college sports betting gained steam after the NCAA announced it would hold the 2025 East Regional of March Madness in Newark. As it stands now, New Jersey bettors would be unable to wager on any NCAA Tournament games that take place in the state.
Though New Jersey’s market would undoubtedly grow if bettors were able to wager on in-state teams, the Garden State needs little help in attracting customers.
In 2020 New Jersey hit $6bn in wagers, shattering the all-time record set in Nevada ($5.4bn) set a year earlier.
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