P.P.A. PETITION GATHERS MOMENTUM

Just a week after launch at the World Series of Poker, a petition organised by the Poker Players Alliance to legalise online poker in the United States has almost reached a total of 200 000 signatures - 6 000 over the weekend alone.
 
The petition is part of the PPA's National Poker Week awareness initiative, and several major online poker networks such as PokerStars and Cake Poker are supporting the project, offering free roll tourneys and making facilities available to players to indicate their support for the legalisation of online poker.  The Poker Players Alliance boasts a membership in excess of a million poker players, and the petition can be expected to grow substantially in the days and weeks ahead.
 
The petition requests state and national politicians to:
 
1) Exempt poker from the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) 
 
2) License and regulate internet poker in the US.
 
3) Respect the rights of law-abiding Americans who love to play this great game of skill.
 
The document reminds politicians that the public response to President Obama's pre-election Citizens’ Briefing Book , which was hosted by Change.gov, overwhelmingly prioritised the need for legalised online poker.
 
My midday Monday this week 194 795 poker players and other concerned citizens had virtually signed the petition. A person’s first name, last name, e-mail address, mailing address, city, state, and zip code are required to add weight to the petition.
 
Former World Champion poker player Greg Raymer urged players to support the petition in an email to PokerStars members he authored last week.  In it, he addressed the US president, saying: “President Obama – Poker is Not a Crime. I am a voter and a fellow poker player asking for your support of my right to play games of skill like poker on the Internet.”
 
As previously reported, the PPA's National Poker Week runs from July 19th to 25th and is to include discussions with Washington DC politicians by the PPA's 30 state directors, along with high profile figures in the player community.
 
Full details are available on the PPA website.