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Clinton County isn't destined to become the Atlantic City of the Buckeye state, as Ohio voters were ignoring promises of new jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenues and defeating a proposed constitutional amendment that would have allowed construction of a $600 million casino complex at Interstate 71 and Ohio 73.

With 50 percent of Ohio precincts reporting, Issue 6 was losing, 38-62 percent. It's the fourth time since 1990 that Ohio voters have rejected a proposal to legalize gambling. The Associated Press called the race, saying the issue was defeated.

"It doesn't really come as a surprise — Ohioans always reject proposals like this," said Rob Walgate, co-chair of the Vote No on Casinos Committee. "This was the worst of the four proposals by far. At the end of the day, Ohioans are too smart to fall for the scam that was put in front of them."

The casino developers — who wrote the ballot language — pledged to use 2,600 construction workers and up to 5,000 permanent, full-time workers for the entertainment complex, which would have included a casino, a luxury hotel, a 2,500-seat theater, a championship golf course and eight upscale restaurants.

The developers argued that Ohio should receive the tax benefits of casino gambling that are going over state lines, particularly to casinos in Indiana. Issue 6 called for the gambling proceeds to be taxed at 30 percent, and the Ohio Department of Taxation estimated the casino would generate more than $200 million annually in tax distributions to Ohio's 88 counties.

The northeastern Ohio men pushing the issue were Rick Lertzman and Brad Pressman, but the majority owner of the casino project would have been Lakes Entertainment Inc. of Minnetonka, Minn., headed by high-stakes gambler Lyle Berman.

It was a tempting package in a state in economic decline and near a town, Wilmington, about to lose 8,000 jobs with the planned closing of DHL.

But opponents said Issue 6 contained a loophole that would enable the developers to pay less than 30 percent, perhaps even no gaming taxes at all, if another casino were to locate in Ohio. That loophole caused the Carpenters Union council in Ohio, which initially endorsed the plan, to reverse its endorsement Friday and urge members to vote no.

Opposition to Issue 6 came from two distinct organizations: Walgate's conservative American Policy Roundtable and a No on 6 Committee, funded by Penn National Gaming Inc., owner of Indiana's Argosy Casino, which would stand to lose business to an Ohio casino.