Friends and foes of table games ramp up their campaigns

Both sides of the table games debate in Kanawha County are ramping up efforts to sway voters before the June 9 vote on expanded gambling.

Officials at Tri-State Racetrack have hired two high-powered consultants to frame its pro-table games campaign to the public.

Charles Ryan Associates and Rainmaker Media Group have already begun coordinating the track's message in anticipation of the county's June 9 referendum election, when residents will decide whether the track can offer table games like roulette and blackjack.

Table games opponents -- mostly faith-based groups -- are rallying on their own and preparing a lawsuit over the legislative measure that cleared the way for the elections in Kanawha and the three other racetrack counties -- Hancock, Ohio and Jefferson.

For their push, Tri-State's consultants have been conducting telephone polls and forming focus groups.

The focus groups are scheduled to convene in the next week or so to solicit public opinion on table games and to help shape the track's final campaign message, said gaming lobbyist John Cavacini.

Charleston firm Charles Ryan is handling the public relations end of the campaign, while Rainmaker is working on voter data, Cavacini said.

Dan Adkins, vice president of Hartman and Tyner, the parent company of Tri-State, said he doesn't know how much the campaign will end up costing the racetrack.

"There's no budget yet for this campaign," he said. "We'll just see where we stand and go from there."

On the other side, Lewisburg lawyer Barry Bruce is working on the anti-table games lawsuit for the West Virginia Family Foundation, a conservative grassroots organization.

Bruce said the suit could be filed as early as the end of this week, depending on the results of an informal survey the group is conducting. They are polling voters who participated in the 1984 election on the Constitutional amendment that created the state Lottery.

The survey asks those voters if they thought back then that the amendment would eventually clear the way for black jack and roulette, Bruce said.

Opponents of table games say voters who approved the Lottery never intended for gambling to expand as far as it has.

"We're just trying to nail that down," Bruce said.

Prior to passage of the bill last session that authorized the table games elections, some lawmakers also argued that the Lottery amendment doesn't allow table games.

The Family Foundation might end up conducting a more detailed survey of 1984 voters. Data gleaned from either survey would be used to bolster the argument in the lawsuit, Bruce said.

Another faith-based group, the West Virginia Values Coalition, has information and materials available on its Web site for church leaders, including anti-gambling posters, church bulletin inserts and legal guidance for pastors.

"We currently do not have funding for commercials and television ads," said John Carey, of the coalition. "We're forced to network with individuals one on one."

The group also plans to file a legal brief supporting any Family Foundation lawsuit, Carely said.

Though he admitted he's a little nervous about Tri-State's financial resources in mounting its campaign, Carey said he'll remain steadfast.

"I don't lose any sleep over it," he said. "I'm focused on doing the right thing each day."

Contact writer Justin D. Anderson at 348-4843.