Propositions 26 and 27 would both legalize sports betting in California, but with different approaches.
Proposition 26 would permit sports betting at Native American casinos and California racetracks, while Proposition 27 would allow online sports betting. If current polling holds true, however, it is likely both propositions will fail to pass in the November election.
"Since the Supreme Court allowed states to do this in 2018, there's been this huge gold rush all across the country with states taking different routes ... nearly all moving in the direction of legalizing gaming," said Thad Kousser, professor of political science at UC San Diego. "California is one of the last holdouts and that seems surprising. And it looks like as of November, we may still be a holdout because neither of these initiatives is faring very well in initial polling."
Even if both propositions fail in November, it won't be the end of the road for legalized sports betting in California, Kousser said.
"These initiatives, even if they both go down to defeat in November, that won't end the debate on gambling in California just because it's such a massive market," Kousser said. "We're going to see another attempt for someone to capitalize on it."
Kousser joined KPBS Midday Edition Tuesday to explain the differences between the propositions 26 and 27, and the major players behind them.
