Sands Casino-Backed, Pro-Gambling Texas Lawmakers Loses Senate Election

The road to legal casino gambling in Texas is about to get much tougher following the decision of an influential political race.

Texas’ Senate District 9 represents approximately one million people in and around Fort Worth. Former Southlake Mayor John Huffman, whose campaign was fueled by millions of dollars from casino groups, was one of three candidates who were up for consideration for the position, but he finished in a distant third in Tuesday’s special election.

Democrat union leader Taylor Rehmet and Republican activist Leigh Wambsganss are poised to enter a run-off to see who will fill the seat, which was vacated by Kelly Hancock, who resigned earlier this year to become acting comptroller.

Gambling industry dealt a blow

The involvement of casino money and power was one of the biggest talking points of the election.

Huffman’s campaign received several contributions from the Texas Sands PAC, a political group tied to Las Vegas Sands. Notably, Dallas Mavericks owner Miriam Adelson is the majority owner of Sands and has been influential in Sands spending millions of dollars in pro-gambling lobbying efforts in Texas.

Despite the donations, Huffman faced a tough path. Wambsganss was endorsed by President Donald Trump, who won the district by a near-60-point margin in the 2024 Presidential Election.

“The conservative voters of SD9 have spoken clearly and distinctly,” Wambsganss said on Tuesday night. “They want to send a conservative patriot to Austin to represent them.”

Wambsganss strongly opposes casino legalization, drawing from Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who has supported the former’s campaign. Lt. Gov. Patrick controls the Senate and has long vowed to kill any casino or sports betting bills that went for a final review.

Rehmet, meanwhile, won 47 percent of early voting. She previously displayed an openness to casino gambling despite being on the wrong side of Sands’ financial allocations.

Eyes on the future

Texas has the potential to be one of the largest gambling states in America because of its massive population. Sportsbooks and casino companies have actively pushed to get legislation over the line, but to no avail.

Sands is on record with its intent to build a casino-resort in Texas, which would’ve presumably sat on the 182 acres next to the old Texas Stadium in Irving the company purchased recently. The company rezoned the site this year, although it was forced to strip provisions for a casino and a night club following public backlash. 

With Huffman out of the race, members of the gambling community will have to put their faith in Rehmet.

Since no candidate reached a majority, there will be a run-off to determine who will carry out the remainder of Hancock’s term.

The seat will also be back on the ballot next year with primaries for both parties and the general election in November. The winner of that vote will serve for four years beginning in 2027.