A recent poll conducted by ReconMR for Texas Pulse and Texas A&M Bush School shows Texas incumbent Lt. Governor and Republican candidate Dan Patrick behind Democratic nominee Vikki Goodwin by 48% to 46%. If Goodwin is elected over Patrick, it could change the trajectory of Texas sports betting.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has held his position in the Lone Star State since 2015. Currently running for his fourth term, Lt. Gov. Patrick has been firmly against Texas sports betting throughout his tenure. This is why the decision for Lt. Gov. Patrick to run again brought about skepticism about the future of sports betting in Texas.
Since the Lieutenant Governor has the authority to control which bills reach the Senate Floor, Lt. Gov. Patrick has been able to squash Texas sports betting legislation before they get off the ground.
For example, in 2023, sports betting bills passed the Texas House, but Lt. Gov. Patrick did not allow them to get any committee hearings or floor votes in the Senate. In a post on X that year, Lt. Gov. Patrick stated that “there is little to no support for expanding gaming from Senate GOP” and that they “don’t waste time on bills without overwhelming GOP support.”
To that end, if Lt. Gov. Patrick were to be re-elected, it would likely mean that any momentum towards Texas sports betting legalization would once again be squashed. However, with the recent poll results by ReconMR for Texas Pulse and Texas A&M Bush School, there is some room for optimism.
Despite the positive results from this poll, it’s important to temper expectations. For one, the poll only included 619 respondents, so it’s a small sample size. Additionally, within these results, a 48% to 46% difference is quite minor, meaning that it’s not enough of a gap to warrant close attention.
Given that Lt. Gov. Patrick has already held this position for three terms, it’s reasonable to expect a strong degree of difficulty in winning an election against him. With a term lasting four years, if Lt. Gov. Patrick gets re-elected, there’s unlikely to be changes to existing laws on Texas sports betting.
With sports betting continuing to become popular across the country, some Texas residents undoubtedly feel some degree of influence to try it out. With no regulated platforms available to them, that could pressure them to join offshore sportsbooks.
This is problematic because offshore betting sites don’t have the same consumer protections in place when it comes to security and integrity. There is no regulatory body to oversee operations and make sure they’re up to compliance standards. This puts users at risk.
Additionally, the absence of a regulated platform takes away the opportunity for Texas to get tax revenue from sports betting, which can be used for essential services. To that end, a move to legalize sports betting in Texas can be beneficial for the state.
Needless to say, industry observers will be paying close attention to the Lieutenant Governor race, since it clearly has major repercussions on the immediate future of sports betting within the Lone Star State. The election will be held in November 2026, so we’ll see if these early poll results gave us a glimpse on the final result or if they were just due to a small sample.
