Poll: Maine Voters Oppose iGaming Legalization

• A commissioned poll from the National Association Against iGaming shows 64% of Maine voters oppose iGaming legalization
• Nearly half of those participating in the poll are “strongly opposed” to legalization
• Gov. Janet Mills (D) will choose to either veto an approved iGaming bill or allow it to become law by Jan. 10

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According to a commissioned poll from the National Association Against iGaming, 64% of Maine voters are in opposition of legalized iGaming in the Pine Tree State.

Gov. Janet Mills (D) will have to choose to either veto an approved iGaming bill or allow it to become law when Maine’s 2026 legislative session kicks off on Wednesday, Jan. 7. She will have until Saturday, Jan. 10 to veto or approve bills she took no action on in the 2025 session.

The results of the poll show that only 16% of registered participating Maine voters approve of legalized iGaming.

Voters Against iGaming Legalization

The Maine Senate and House approved LD 1164, a bill to legalize iGaming, this past July. However, Gov. Mills declined to take action on the legislation, instead choosing to wait on the bill until this week.

The statewide survey included 500 likely general election voters in Maine, conducted from Dec. 13 to 16. In total, 64% of respondents opposed legalized iGaming, with 49% noting they are “strongly opposed” to the new form of gaming.

Opposition to legalized iGaming spanned party lines, as 69% of Democrats, 58% of Republicans, and 70% of independents reported opposition. According to the results, only 16% of respondents support legalized iGaming, with 9% strongly supporting legalization.

“If Maine allows iGaming to become law, the state will stand out as an outlier in New England and across the country at a time when other governors and legislatures are hearing from their constituents and choosing not to move forward with this highly addictive form of gambling,” said Jason Gumer, NAAiG Board Member and Executive Vice President & General Counsel at Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc., in a release. “The results ring loud and clear: Maine voters reject iGaming when they understand it puts a 24/7 casino on the same smartphones their kids use.”

Bill Waiting on Governor Signature

With the governor declining to take action prior to the conclusion of the legislative session, she will now have three days beginning on Wednesday, Jan. 7, to make a decision on LD 1164.

Maine’s iGaming bill had a strange journey to approval in 2025 The bill was introduced early in the year, but received little to no interest. It was resurrected by the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee in May after Gov. Mills directed lawmakers to come back for a special session to discuss the state’s upcoming budget.

The Maine Senate approved the bill in June by an 85-59 vote, but the Senate took a different route to approval. The Senate split on the bill initially, tabling it on June 12. The Senate took the bill back up in late June, attempting to reject it outright, but a vote fell short. Members of the Senate ultimately passed the bill in July without a roll call.

Following legislative protocol, both the House and Senate followed the recommendation of the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee and approved the bill.

If signed into law, Maine will become the eighth state in the country to approve iGaming.

Maine Gaming Control Board Urges Veto

Steven J. Silver, Chairman of the Gaming Control Board, wrote to Mills on behalf of the board last month. In the letter obtained by Sports Betting Dime, Silver urges Mills to veto the legislation, noting that in its current form iGaming would be harmful to consumers and Maine casino workers.

“Although the Board has varying personal opinions about the general merits of legalizing Internet Gaming (“iGaming”), we are unified in our belief that any qualified operator should have the ability to obtain an iGaming license including the Wabanaki Nations. Cutting out Oxford and Hollywood Casinos entirely from offering iGaming is ill-advised and creates a monopoly that is harmful to consumers and the Maine workers employed by Oxford and Hollywood Casinos.”

Silver warned the iGaming bill only approves the new form of gaming for the Wabanaki Nations, excluding both Oxford Casino and Hollywood Casino. Without allowing the two casinos to benefit from iGaming revenues, this could potentially lead to the loss of 100 to 200 casino jobs.

Currently, the Mi’kmak Nation, Maliseet Tribe, and Penobscot Nation are all partnered with Caesars Sportsbook for their retail and online sports betting services, while the Passamaquoddy Tribe is partnered with DraftKings.

The partnerships will likely not change if LD 1164 is signed into law, with DraftKings and Caesars Sportsbook remaining as the only two licensed iGaming operators in the state.

“However, Oxford and Hollywood Casinos employ nearly 1,000 Mainers. Legalizing iGaming without permitting Oxford and Hollywood to participate will lead to job cuts. During the Board’s October meeting, representatives from Oxford Casino explained that approximately 120 Mainers will lose their jobs due to LD 1164’s impact on that property alone. Hollywood Casino anticipates significant job losses as well. We cannot afford to put 100-200 Mainers out of work,” Silver wrote.