It was an historic election in the United States last month. Voters elected the first African-American president, the Democrats gained an even tighter grip on Congress and gaming celebrated its most positive results in years.

Barack Obama’s election to the presidency was not only historic, but it could be transformative. While the impact of an Obama administration and an overwhelmingly Democratic Congress is uncertain on gaming, online gaming is more enthusiastic because the role of champion Rep. Barney Frank has been front-and-center in the economic bailout.

But it was in state referendums where the gaming industry made the most gains. The following results were mostly good news for the gaming business:

Colorado adds craps and more

Sixty percent of Colorado voters favored Amendment 50, which allows the state’s three gambling towns to let casinos raise maximum bets to $100 from $5, add craps and roulette and stay open 24 hours every day. The changes could take effect by mid-2009.

Cripple Creek’s mayor said the local vote will be held as soon as possible. Black Hawk and Central City were expected to follow suit soon.

New taxes from increased gaming revenue will go mostly to Colorado’s community college system. “The state estimates the revisions would bring in an additional $300 million over the next five years,” one  report said.

Maryland: Yes on slots

Maryland voters approved a constitutional amendment that legalizes a total of 15,000 slot machines to be placed at five locations in the state. The amendment, crafted and promoted by Governor Martin O’Malley, passed with a comfortable 59 percent margin.

The referendum authorizes slots at one facility in each of three counties—Anne Arundel, Cecil and Worcester—plus one in the city of Baltimore and another on state-owned land Rocky Gap State Park in western Maryland. The specific locations sited provide that slots may be added to two racetracks, Laurel Park in Anne Arundel County and Ocean Downs in Worcester County. While the language of the referendum does not require slots to be added to those specific sites, it has been presumed that those tracks will become racinos.

The amendment provides for the creation of a gambling commission that would be empowered to alter the number of slots permitted in any one location according to market conditions, though none will be permitted to have more than 4,750.

Maine casino rejected

Hollywood Slots casino in Bangor will remain the only slots in Maine with the decisive defeat November 4 of Question 2, a measure that would have authorized a $184 million casino and hotel in Oxford County.

The vote was 54 percent versus 46 percent against Las Vegas-based Olympia Gaming’s proposal that it jumped into weeks before the election after the original sponsor dropped out.

Not now in Ohio

Ohio’s Issue 6 casino proposal went down in a 2-1 margin defeat last week with about 3.28 million voting against it and 1.95 million for, yet the proponents, MyOhioNow, say they will return again next year with a more finely-tuned proposal, this one with casinos in multiple locations, instead of just one.

Missouri ends loss limits

The voters in Missouri last week ended the state’s unique $500 gambling loss limit put in place in 1992 that casino owners felt had hobbled the gaming industry and made it less competitive against casinos in other states.

The vote on Proposition A was lopsided, 56 percent in favor and 44 percent against.

To balance out the removal of the loss limit, gaming taxes will go from 20 percent to 21 percent, giving education an estimated additional $110 million a year, and put a lid on new casinos in the state at 13, something that existing casino owners are happy about, because it means that the market won’t become saturated.

The limit was immediately lifted.

West Virginia resort goes to tables

A referendum authorizing table games at the Greenbrier Resort passed by 366 of 13,000 votes cast in Greenbrier County, West Virginia. The vote prompted the resort to start seeking “a third-party adviser to comprehensively evaluate gaming’s potential impacts,” Greenbrier President Andrew Fogarty wrote to employees the day after the election.

Other issues

In Massachusetts, voters overwhelmingly approved a referendum that puts an end to greyhound racing before January 1, 2010. The results means that the Raynham-Taunton Greyhound Park in Raynham and the Wonderland Greyhound Park in Revere will be forced to close, throwing more than 1,000 people out of work. It’s unclear what this means to the tracks’ pursuit of slots, which has been put aside until next year.

Arkansans voted 63 percent to 37 percent to legalize a lottery, which the state constitution has banned for 172 years.

In Delaware, Jack Markell was elected governor. Markell is open to the expansion of gaming, which was not true of the current governor, Ruth Ann Minner. Delaware is likely to add sports betting and table games within the next two years to combat the threat of slot machines from Maryland.

By Casino Connection Staff