The fate of the North Fork casino is likely in the hands of state voters. (Martin Abegglen/Flickr)

Anti-gambling activists say they have acquired enough signatures to place a referendum aiming to overturn a controversial gaming compact on the statewide ballot this November.

Opponents of the proposed North Fork Rancheria Resort Hotel & Casino acquired over 800,000 signatures, well above the 504,760 required by today’s deadline.

The referendum will seek to overturn a controversial gaming compact ratified by the state Legislature earlier this year.

Gov. Jerry Brown and the state Legislature ratified a gaming compact for the 305-acre North Fork Rancheria Resort Hotel & Casino in July, but the proposed site drew considerable attention due to both its location and proximity to the state highway.

Located off of Route 99 and nearly 40 miles away from the North Fork Rancheria reservation, it would be the first off-reservation tribal casino in California. The $200 million project is seen as a necessity for the tribe, but opponents have referred to the venture as “reservation shopping.”

The distance between the proposed casino site and the North Fork Rancheria reservation is what has opponents up in arms. (Google Maps)

Efforts to overturn the casino were led by Keep Vegas-Style Casinos Out of Neighborhoods, an offshoot of a nonprofit called Stand Up for California.

Cheryl Schmit, the director of Stand Up for California, in a statement released to the press said, “This referendum is about upholding the will of California voters and giving covers, not elected officials, the choice to make such dramatic change in California’s Indian gaming policy.”

Madera County supervisor Tom Wheeler also released a statement assailing opponents of the casino project and reiterated that the “tribe has followed every rule and requirement and deserves to move forward with their project.”

“We stand to lose nearly 4,000 jobs and $100 million dollars of funding if this referendum passes,” he added.

Last week, the Sierra Star added an extra wrinkle to the debate when it reported that rival tribal casino interests had dumped millions of dollars into funding the referendum effort.

"It's unfortunate that tens of millions of dollars will now go to fight over this," Gov. Brown told reporters at the Capitol after the report. “I think this is a dispute about money, mostly, money and competition."

Elaine Bethel-Fink, Tribal Chair for the North Fork Rancheria, was equally adamant that the referendum was the result of special interests trying “to gain a financial advantage by stopping competition.”

Once the signatures are verified, the gaming compact will be put on hold until California voters cast their ballots this November.

Schmit is confident in the measure and is already looking forward to mobilizing the “opposition to reservation shopping across California.”

“By rejecting this compact, we can send a strong message that Indian gaming should remain on tribal land,” she said.

Belthel-Fink, however, remains steadfast in her belief that the casino project will move forward and that California state voters will ultimately reject the referendum, as they “have all similar measures to roll-back tribal self-sufficiency.” 

Reach reporter Will Federman here or tweet him at @wfederman.