Kanawha early vote big

By LAWRENCE MESSINA

The Associated Press

August 6, 2007

CHARLESTON -- With most signs pointing to a close election, Kanawha County is on course to cast as many early ballots on the table games question as all three of the other counties that have already decided the issue.

More than 6,600 Kanawha residents have chimed in on whether to make Tri-State Racetrack & Gaming Center a full-blown casino. Three days of early voting remain before Saturday's special election.

Racetrack supporters and gambling foes alike see victory in sight.

"I think so many folks have just jumped in," said the Rev. Dennis Sparks, executive director of the West Virginia Council of Churches. "There's been so much going on and so much good stuff. We have a lot of momentum."

The antigambling coalition that Sparks helps lead had planned to arrange for a different church to deliver "no" votes to the polling place on each of the 14 days of early balloting. Though their campaign has not unfolded that way, Sparks said he felt his side had the edge in early voting -- until Thursday.

That's when 1,114 people showed up at the county voter registration office, the largest one-day total so far. Pro-table games supporters have targeted Thursdays because the office stays open two extra hours, to 7 p.m. Their campaign rented a nearby parking lot and then notified voters identified as potential supporters through extensive polling.

"Labor has also worked extraordinarily hard to turn out their members, particularly the construction trades and particularly on Thursdays," said Larry LaCorte, a veteran political consultant helping to coordinate the campaign.

Unions see the promise of jobs from table games, and from expanding and enhancing Tri-State if they are approved. But last week's turnout also reflected support from the business community: the Young Professionals Initiative of the Charleston Area Alliance arranged a major turnout to the polling place by its members.

Only the four counties with tracks can vote on whether to allow each to host poker, blackjack and other table games. Thanks to a missed public notice requirement, Kanawha is the last eligible county to hold the necessary referendum this year.

With the vote considered close, allegations have arisen that gambling opponents have been harassed and their anti-table games signs stolen or vandalized.

One Cross Lanes resident told police that someone blasted his "Vote No" sign with a shotgun. The First Baptist Church of St. Albans reported the swiping of its antigambling banner from its front porch.

Table games supporters have cried foul over the role religious groups have played on the other side. A billboard rented in Charleston, which has God urging voters to reject the referendum, has been for them a case in point.

But the pro-racetrack forces have also responded to such efforts with science. Detailed polling has helped them gauge voter opinions. To them, the ensuing analysis suggests their key to winning may lie with the once-low ranks of undecided voters.

Their well-funded campaign has featured daily full-page newspapers ads and even more frequent TV and radio spots. To peel away no-leaning voters, supporters have heeded the poll results and used these ads to highlight the touted economic benefits, and note that gambling already exists in Kanawha County. They have even underscored how voters can rescind the approval of table games after five years.

"What we've seen in our public opinion research is that the number of undecideds is starting to grow. That is very good for us," LaCorte said. "We think we're going to capture their support... Our field operations are going to know who we need to turn out Saturday."