Las Vegas Sands came out of the March 3 Texas primaries with less to show for its spending than it wanted. Several anti-gambling Republican incumbents kept their seats, and Cheryl Bean, a vocal gambling opponent, won the Republican nomination in House District 94 despite opposition from the casino-backed PAC network.
That does not end Sands’ push for destination resorts in Texas. But it does show the same problem the company has been running into for years. Texas is a huge prize for the casino industry, yet money and lobbying still have not changed the basic math in Austin.
Anti-gambling Republicans kept their footing
Some of Sands’ clearest setbacks came in House primaries. State Reps. David Lowe, Terri Leo-Wilson, Mark Dorazio and Andy Hopper all beat challengers backed by Sands-linked groups, keeping a bloc of gambling opponents in place.
The spending did not move the closest races enough. Kyle Morris, who challenged Lowe, received $140,000 from Texas Sands PAC and still lost by more than 27 points. Nathan Watkins, who challenged Leo-Wilson, received $110,000 and lost by 25 points. Those losses followed another miss in November, when former Southlake mayor John Huffman failed to reach the runoff in the Senate District 9 special election after taking $1.2 million from Texas Sands PAC.
Millions in PAC money still have not changed the vote count Sands needs
Sands is not backing off. After the primaries, its PAC said it would keep investing in Texas candidates who support casino legalization. That line matches the money behind the effort. Miriam Adelson donated $9 million to Texas Sands PAC and another $9 million to Texas Defense PAC last summer.
The broader point is that Sands has been at this for years and still has not built enough support where it matters most. Texas lawmakers have heard the jobs and tourism pitch before. The problem for Sands is that many Republican voters and officeholders still do not want casino expansion, and the primaries did little to change that.
Dan Patrick and Greg Abbott still block the clearest route forward
Even better primary results would not have solved Sands’ biggest problem. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has said in both the 2023 and 2025 sessions that the Senate would not even vote on pro-gambling bills, and he just won the Republican nomination for another term.
Gov. Greg Abbott has also cooled on the issue. In December, he told CBS News Texas he was “not there yet” on changing the Texas Constitution to allow casino gambling. Any plan for destination resorts would still need approval from at least two-thirds of both chambers before going to voters, and the Texas Legislature meets in regular session every two years. That leaves Sands with the same hard task it had before the primaries: finding a lot more votes, not just spending a lot more money.
