The state of New Jersey was the first to really take off with online gambling, including poker and casino gaming. New Jersey is one of only three that currently offers some form of gaming and while they are at the top of their game, the state has hit a lull with no end in sight. To further their hold on the industry, such brands as PokerStars needs to be allowed to operate within the state. While the brand was having their application reviewed after being acquired by Amaya Gaming, many felt PokerStars would be operating within the state in no time. However, this is not the case.
Now, over the past few days, reports have surfaced that place blame on Governor Chris Christie as to why the state has not allowed PokerStars to gain licensing within the state. The application has been waiting months for approval and according to many sources, it is Christie that is behind the delay.
It was surprising to find that the State Senator of New Jersey, Ray Lesniak, believes that Christie is the reason PokerStars is not operational within the state. In an interview, Lesniak stated that Christie put a stop to PokerStars licensing and with a high degree of confidence, he believes that is exactly what happened. Others agree with the Senator including a local union president who believed that PokerStars should have already been up and running long before now and that it is the governor and the attorney general’s office that is causing the hold up.
Christie responded to the allegations by stating that the claims are ‘nonsensical’ yet others still believe the governor is at fault. The reason behind their thinking is that Christie is planning on running for president in 2016 and will be using Sheldon Adelson as a backer. Everyone in the gaming industry knows that Adelson is against online gambling and would certainly not want to see PokerStars enter the US online gaming marketplace as that would be a definite game changer.
PokerStars entering the state would be beneficial on a number of levels including offering new jobs in the area which Christie is supposed to be in support of. The online poker giant would be able to bring in as many as 1,000 jobs into Atlantic City and this would be helpful as the city has already lost several casinos in 2014, which hurt the community when it comes to job potential.
PokerStars has tried for some time to be licensed in the Atlantic City area. They were first in a partnership with Resorts Casino Hotel but this never moved forward. Then PokerStars was acquired by Amaya Gaming which was thought to be helpful to the licensing process. The Amaya group was already licensed and would be a driving force behind PokerStars being allowed to operate in the area.
However, this does not seem to have helped PokerStars chances. The brand is still waiting for approval and it seems there is no end in sight as to when the brand will be allowed or if they will be allowed to offer gaming. If the reports are correct, then Christie would have used his status to keep the brand from gaining approval instead of allowing the proper reviewing of the application for the company.
For now, we only know what reports are saying, some against Christie and then Christie stating he is not involved. It will be interesting to see how this plays out and if PokerStars will be approved and allowed to within the state within the coming months, or if there will be no approval of the online poker rooms application for operation.