{"id":18059,"date":"2026-08-13T08:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-13T13:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/?post_type=america&#038;p=18059"},"modified":"2026-08-13T06:46:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-13T11:46:08","slug":"gambling-money-floods-florida-elections-with-12-2-million","status":"publish","type":"america","link":"https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/america\/gambling-money-floods-florida-elections-with-12-2-million\/","title":{"rendered":"Gambling money floods Florida elections with $12.2 million"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The gambling industry has contributed at least <strong>US$12.2 million<\/strong> to candidates and political committees in Florida during the 2026 election cycle, just six days before the <strong>August 18 primaries<\/strong>, with the <strong>Seminole Tribe of Florida<\/strong> accounting for roughly three out of every four dollars contributed by casinos, sportsbooks, online gambling platforms and prediction markets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/mve-ads\/?lang=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\" noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"500\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/05\/ADS-MVE.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-16352\" style=\"width:840px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/05\/ADS-MVE.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/05\/ADS-MVE-300x250.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The largest recipient is <strong>Byron Donalds<\/strong>, the Republican candidate for governor, who has received close to <strong>half of the identified gambling-related money<\/strong>, or about US$6 million according to the investigation published on August 11. Florida\u2019s Division of Elections confirms that the governorship is on the ballot this year and that Donalds had also received <strong>US$662,350.93 in public matching funds<\/strong> as of July 17. The primaries are scheduled for <strong>August 18<\/strong>, with mandatory early voting running from <strong>August 8 through August 15<\/strong>, while the general election will take place on <strong>November 3, 2026<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/gambling-money-floods-florida-elections-with-12-2-million2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-18061\" style=\"width:840px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/gambling-money-floods-florida-elections-with-12-2-million2.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/gambling-money-floods-florida-elections-with-12-2-million2-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/gambling-money-floods-florida-elections-with-12-2-million2-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Marcellus W. Osceola Jr<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The political spending surge comes as Florida faces a broader fight over the future of digital gambling. The <strong>2021 Gaming Compact<\/strong>, incorporated into <strong>Florida Statutes \u00a7285.710<\/strong>, underpins the framework allowing the Seminole Tribe to operate sports betting through Hard Rock. The <strong>Florida Gaming Control Commission (FGCC)<\/strong> states that, except for wagering conducted through sportsbooks operated by or in coordination with the tribe, online sports betting in Florida is likely illegal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"721\" height=\"453\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/gambling-money-floods-florida-elections-with-12-2-million3.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-18062\" style=\"width:840px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/gambling-money-floods-florida-elections-with-12-2-million3.png 721w, https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/gambling-money-floods-florida-elections-with-12-2-million3-300x188.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 721px) 100vw, 721px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Julie Imanuel Brown<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Seminole Tribe is chaired by <strong>Marcellus W. Osceola Jr.<\/strong>, while the state regulator is led by <strong>Julie Imanuel Brown<\/strong>, Chair of the FGCC, with <strong>Alana Zimmer<\/strong> serving as Executive Director. The commission oversees pari-mutuel wagering, cardrooms, slots and compliance with the compact, while its fiscal operations account for approximately <strong>US$341 million in revenue-share payments<\/strong> from the tribe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/landing\/multigame-link\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\" noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"700\" height=\"700\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/08\/multigame-diamod-III-700-eng.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9622\" style=\"width:840px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/08\/multigame-diamod-III-700-eng.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/08\/multigame-diamod-III-700-eng-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mundovideo.com.co\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/08\/multigame-diamod-III-700-eng-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The dispute is widening with <strong>Kalshi<\/strong> and other prediction markets regulated federally by the <strong>Commodity Futures Trading Commission<\/strong>, chaired by <strong>Michael S. Selig<\/strong>, who maintains that the CFTC has exclusive jurisdiction over these event contracts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Seminole Tribe also contributed <strong>US$50,000<\/strong> to the political effort backing former Florida Governor <strong>Charlie Crist<\/strong> in the St. Petersburg mayoral race, while incumbent Mayor <strong>Ken Welch<\/strong> has questioned the growing influence of gambling money in a contest where the future of Derby Lane and broader entertainment development remain another political flashpoint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The gambling industry has contributed at least US$12.2 million to candidates and political committees in Florida during the 2026 election cycle, just six days before the August 18 primaries, with the Seminole Tribe of Florida accounting for roughly three out of every four dollars contributed by casinos, sportsbooks, online gambling platforms and prediction markets.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18060,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[1458,57,305,15,105,1406,4996],"class_list":["post-18059","america","type-america","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sin-categoria","tag-america","tag-casinos","tag-florida","tag-gambling","tag-sports-betting","tag-tribal-casinos","tag-tribal-gambling","entry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.6 - 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