News writer; Opinion columnist
There's reason to celebrate in the Magnolia state as the Mississippi Lottery Commission hit the jackpot and announced that it sold $2 billion worth of tickets in just its fourth year of operations.
While Mississippi was later than most states in establishing a lottery, it hasn't wasted any time cashing in on a passion for gaming.
Origins
Casino gambling has been legal in Mississippi since 1992, but the state constitution explicitly banned all forms of lottery gaming until it was amended in 1992. However, despite this change, an official state lottery wasn't established until 2018 by a vote of the state legislature.
In those first days, players had access to four different scratcher-off tickets and one draw game, which had a maximum jackpot of just $500.
Despite this limited selection of games, the lottery proved to be an instant hit, selling millions of dollars worth of tickets in its first week.
Dr. Mike McGervey, the MLC Board of Directors chairman, attributed the lottery's success to a statewide effort and cooperation between all stakeholders:
Enthusiastic retailers, loyal players, dedicated Lottery employees, and knowledgeable vendors have all contributed to the success of the MLC. Given the achievements so far and the plans for the future, I sincerely believe the Mississippi Lottery will continue to be a winner for Mississippi.
MLC President Jeff Hewitt added:
Reaching the $2 billion mark is an incredible accomplishment, and we are excited about continuing our growth and success into Year 5.
First games
The lottery was officially open to players on November 19, 2019, when the first set of scratch-off games were made available for sale. Those games were $100,000 Jackpot, 3 Times Lucky, Happy Holidays Y'All, and Triple 7.
These games were an instant hit and grossed over $2.5 million in sales in one day and $8.9 million in the first week of sales.
One of the state's first draw games was Cash 3, which was available to play on September 1, 2020. An exact straight match paid out a $500 jackpot, and players could play variations such as boxes and any order.
On January 10, 2022, that state introduced Cash 4, which was similar to Cash 3 but required players to match a four-digit number and offered a $5,000 jackpot.
Later that year, a Fireball Feature was added to give players new ways to create winning number combinations. With Fireball, players could replace a number on their Cash 3 or Cash 4 tickets with a Fireball number, which offered more ways to win but doubled the cost of the ticket.
Megamillions and Powerball tickets were also made available for purchase starting on January 20, 2020.
Unlike in most states, where the legal age to play is 18, in Mississippi, players must be 21 to buy tickets legally.
State benefit
Under the rules established by the original legislation, the first $80 million the MLC collects each year is directed toward the state Highway Fund. Once that threshold is reached, funds are sent to the Education Enhancement Fund. To date, over $377 million has gone toward state highways, and the EEF has received more than $142 million.
