ST. PAUL, Minn. — A bill to legalize sports betting in Minnesota is in serious trouble as it clashes with partisan resentment over the arrest of a senator on suspicion of burglary.
One of the lead authors, Democratic Sen. Matt Klein, of Mendota Heights, isn’t ready to call sports betting dead. But he said in an interview Thursday that he is less optimistic than he was before Democratic Sen. Nicole Mitchell of Woodbury was charged last week with breaking into her estranged stepmother’s home.
In the House of Representatives, Pat Garofalo, a Republican sports betting advocate considered key to any bipartisan deal, said he thinks this year’s bill is effectively dead, though it came closer than ever before.
“It’s like classic Minnesota sports style: We were ahead by a touchdown with two minutes to go, and we had the ball, and we turned it over,” Garofalo said in an interview. “The bad guys scored and it went into overtime. We missed a field goal and now it’s over.”
Mitchell told police she broke in because her stepmother refused to give her items of sentimental value belonging to her late father, including his ashes, according to the complaint. Senate Democrats have barred her from caucus meetings and removed her from committees, but have not publicly asked her to quit. Her lawyer has said she deserves a fair trial and will not resign.
Mitchell this week resumed voting in the Senate — where Democrats have just a one-seat majority — even on votes that affect her fate. Senate Republicans have forced hours of debate over failed efforts to impeach her, slowing the pace of legislation with less than three weeks to go. An ethics panel will consider a GOP complaint against her on Tuesday.
Sports betting has grown rapidly in recent years to include at least 38 states, but the likelihood of many more joining them appears low this year due to political resistance and the sometimes competing financial interests of existing gambling operators. Sports betting supporters in Missouri filed petitions Thursday to try to put the issue on the November ballot, but proposals have stalled in Alabama and Georgia.
Legalizing sports betting in Minnesota would require bipartisan support because of slim Democratic majorities in both chambers. Some Republicans and Democrats would vote against it anyway. The bills under discussion would put sports betting under the control of the state’s Native American tribes, both at their brick-and-mortar casinos and off reservations through lucrative mobile apps. Major outstanding sticking points include whether the state’s two horse racing tracks and charity gaming operations should get even a piece of the action.
“It has always been a bipartisan bill. And bipartisanship has taken a real hit here in recent weeks,” Klein said.
Klein said he stood by comments he first made to Minnesota Public Radio on Wednesday that he would have put the chances of passage at 60% to 70% a month ago, but he now puts them at 20%.
Democratic Gov. Tim Walz told reporters he would sign a sports betting bill if it came to his desk, but that Klein is probably right.
Kline said he is still in discussions with Republican Sen. Jeremy Miller of Winona, who agreed that the dispute over Mitchell’s continued presence in the Senate complicates matters.
“I still think there is a path. I think it’s a narrow path. But if we can get the stakeholders together and work toward an agreement, there is still a chance to get it done,” Miller said. “But with each passing day, the chances become smaller and smaller.”
The House of Representatives’ lead sponsor, Democratic Rep. Zack Stephenson, of Coon Rapids, said he still puts the chances at 50%.
“This is always going to be a difficult bill to pass under the best of circumstances, and we certainly have a lot of challenges going on right now,” Stephenson said.
Democratic House Speaker Melissa Hortman of Brooklyn Park told reporters that the House will likely pass the bill in the remaining days of the session without focusing too much on what may or may not pass the Senate.
“We can send something and maybe that will help break the impasse,” Hortman said.