The first ever Mississippi Lottery tickets are expected to go on sell at all member retailers on December 1. The Mississippi Lottery Commission (MLC) announced that the December 1 opening day will include scratch-off lottery tickets only, with Powerball and Mega Millions tickets expected to begin sales in the first quarter of 2020.
Local residents appear to be split on whether or not they are excited about the lottery finally coming to Mississippi, but like it or not the lottery will begin in less than 90 days.
Gaynell Countryman of Harperville is excited about the lottery getting started. “I’m really excited about finally getting the lottery in Mississippi,” she said. “I have been driving to Louisiana for years to get lottery tickets when the jackpots got high, so this will save me a lot of time and money on gas.”
Countryman said that she, and a group of family and friends would commonly either car pool and drive to Louisiana, or alternate who would make the trip across the Mississippi River from Vicksburg.
“I know there are a lot of people here in Scott County that would do the same thing I have been doing by traveling long distances to get lottery tickets,” Countryman added. “Now we will be able to visit our local stores and spend that money right here at home.”
The MLC also recently announced that the MS Lottery Retail Vendor Application is available to all retailers that plan to be a MS Lottery vendor. The application itself requires that all lottery vendors be bonded, submit a letter of credit, undergo a site evaluation and provide numerous financial documents for review.
Vance Cox, owner of Cox Chevron in Forest, said the application process is pretty in-depth. “We have reviewed and printed off the lottery application, and are in the process of completing the application and compiling all the required financial records,” he said. “The application process is very in-depth, but I understand why the lottery commission has made it this way and we are working to get our application submitted.”
The MS Lottery application is available on the MLC’s website.
“Over the last month, we have received a large number of calls from retailer operators around the state who are enthusiastic about coming on board to sell lottery tickets,” said MLC President Tom Shaheen. “As the number of applications come in, our team will be working in overdrive to receive, process and validate the information in anticipation of our December 1 launch date for scratch-offs.”
Tickets will primarily be sold in convenience stores, gas stations, supermarkets, grocery stores, tobacco/beer stores, as well as a variety of other types of retail businesses. Licensed casinos are also applicable.
Christina Weeks, owner of Harperville General Store, said that her customers are ready for the lottery to start. “We have to go through a lot to be licensed retailer for the lottery, but my customers are really excited about the lottery,” she said. “I have people ask about when its going to start about every other day, so I know there is a lot of excitement for the December 1 start.”
Those convenience store owners who were asked, all agreed that the revenue stream that will be generated is unknown at this time. “I don’t foresee this as being a revenue boom,” Cox added. “But curiosity is high and it’s a service we will provide for our customers at Cox Chevron.”
“The prospective retailers are not only coming on board to sell lottery tickets but they are also investing in the opportunity to drive more traffic to their store, increase sales for other store merchandise, receive support from a dedicated Lottery Sales Representative and ultimately assist Mississippi in raising money to help fund infrastructure and educational needs,” said Shaheen.
Businesses interested in becoming part of the statewide network of lottery providers must submit the necessary documentation and application by mail to the MLC. To access the application, visit www.mslotteryhome.com and click the “Procurements & Personnel” tab.
