Trenton's Bad Bet is releasing two new television and two new radio ads condemning the proposed casino expansion.
TRENTON -- An interest group opposing a ballot measure asking voters to expand casino gaming to north Jersey isn't taking any chances.
Trenton's Bad Bet, the opposition group financing an advertising campaign seeking to kill the proposed constitutional amendment, announced Monday it's releasing four new ads targeting "Trenton's broken promises and mismanagement."
Gambling halls are restricted to Atlantic City, but the proposed amendment, before voters on Nov. 8, would clear the way for two casinos in the northern part of the state.
Recent polls show the referendum is likely to go down in defeat. And the fight has become largely one-sided after a group supportive of the expansion suspended its own advertising campaign.
The founders of that group, Our Turn NJ, said Trenton's Bad Bet had deftly turned public sentiment against the amendment with its message that taxpayers can't trust state politicians.
Fight for north Jersey casino isn't over yet
A Stockton University poll released Friday shows 68 percent oppose the proposal for two new casinos, while 27 percent are in support. The poll of 638 likely voters also found 63 percent in North Jersey were opposed, compared with 74 percent in the southern part of the state.
The rollout includes television ads in the New York and Philadelphia media markets and radio spots in Trenton and Atlantic City.
Trenton's Bad Bet is funded in part by Genting Group, the Malaysian company that operates the Resorts World casino at the Aqueduct Racetrack in New York City, which could be hurt by competition from north Jersey casinos.
The ads argue that a casino expansion will create "even more economic pain," destroying 30,000 jobs and jeopardizing funding for schools and roads. They characterize the amendment as a "sweetheart deal" concocted by politicians to "reward their rich special interest friends in north Jersey."
Proponents of northern gaming say it will bring millions in new revenue, thousands of new jobs, and provide tax money to help revitalize Atlantic City.
Samantha Marcus may be reached at smarcus@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @samanthamarcus. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.