A coalition of 25 California tribes has filed a lawsuit against the state of California to extend the deadlines to gather signatures for its sports betting measure. The tribes required 997,139 signatures and collected 971,373 by mid-March when its actions were suspended because of the pandemic.

Tribes want more time

On Tuesday, the tribes sued the state so they can get some extra time for gathering the signature for its sports betting initiative during the November ballot. The Coalition to Authorize Sports Wagering consists of 25 tribes in the state. It suggests that the coronavirus-induced shutdown by the state government didn’t allow them to collect the signatures they needed for their ballot initiative. The tribes are looking for a 90-day extension of their signature collection drive.

The ballot voting is scheduled for November 3 and the coalition suggests that it doesn’t have enough time to collect the required number of signatures if it sticks to the June 25 deadline. A party is usually given 180 days to meet the desired signature target. However, the tribes believe that their efforts were negatively impacted because of the shutdown.

Details of the lawsuit

The suit was filed in the Sacramento County Superior Court and named Alex Padilla, the Secretary of State, as the defendant. Padilla’s office has not commented on the case ye. The lawsuit wants the 180-day signature drive window extended by at least 90 days, or till all counties in the state are in at least stage three or four of reopening.

The tribes spent $7 million in collecting 971,373 signatures for its sports gambling ballot initiative till mid-March.

The tribes want their own sports gambling effort to be included in the ballot and are contesting a similar legislative measure in the Senate and House. The tribes are unhappy that the bill gives additional rights to the state’s card rooms which could violate their exclusive rights. California could become one of the largest sports betting markets in the US given its population of 40 million.