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Gambling Interests Bet Big on Maryland Ballot Measure

gambling, fotosearch.com

OXON HILL, Md. (AP) - The onslaught of ads over gambling expansion has been like no other in a Maryland political year.

Gambling companies have spent more than $50 million so far for and against the question of allowing table games such as blackjack and a casino near the nation's capital. That's compared with the $34 million campaigns spent in the 2006 Maryland governor's race - previously the most expensive in state history.

Terri Tolliver, a Largo resident who said she plans to support the expansion during a recent outing to National Harbor in Oxon Hill, says it will bring jobs and added revenue to the state.

But Trish Villasenor, who lives at National Harbor where a new casino could be built with voter approval, says she would rather not have the additional traffic near her home.

Don Rush is the News Director and Senior Producer of News and Public Affairs at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.