Bookmakers are expecting more interest than ever in betting on this year’s US presidential elections, but for the wider gambling industry on both sides of the Atlantic, it is only in the tribal gaming sector where the choice between McCain or Obama will make any substantive difference to existing federal gaming policy, legal observers believe.

Barney Frank’s congressional committee is scheduled to hold a hearing early next month to examine the US ban on Internet gambling. The discussion coincides with efforts by the Poker Players Alliance to ramp up its lobbying efforts in Washington, D.C. and in state capitols to legalize on-line poker, but it is clear that in Massachusetts and New York, at least, their efforts to reverse the UIGEA’s effects face an uphill battle.

Even though the House may vote early next year on legislation to legalise and regulate internet gambling, a less comprehensive bill in the Senate has a better chance of passing Congress, according to a key lobbyist working to repeal the online wagering ban.

Despite the growing number of concerns tribal gaming operators wish to see addressed, experts warn that next year’s election is unlikely to lead to a substantive shift in Federal policy on Indian affairs and that the experiences of Hillary Clinton and Rudy Giuliani in New York could mean both leading candidates would adopt a hostile attitude to off-reservation tribal casinos if elected.

If tribal leaders reach a consensus on internet gambling next month, their agreement may help determine whether Congress acts this year to overturn the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006.

Some of poker’s biggest stars took their case to Washington, D.C. last week in a bid to lift a controversial federal law that bans online cash tournaments and other forms of internet betting. However, the fledgling Poker Players Alliance faces an uphill battle as it ramps up its lobbying efforts, with legislative change likely to be years off.

While calling for concerted opposition to federal legislation on internet gambling, California’s tribal gaming leaders are only inching towards a state-level strategy of their own to exploit the revenue potential of online gambling.

GamblingCompliance spoke exclusively to French casino operator Patrick Partouche about the prospects for a liberalization of France’s online gambling market during the course of 2008, and the plans of the Partouche Group to bring existing land-based customers to their emerging online business.

The congresswoman who represents Las Vegas predicts the House next year will pass a bill to repeal an internet gambling ban, and refuses to rule out running against a beleaguered Nevada senator in 2012.

Gaming giants Harrah’s and Wynn Resorts believe the possibility of state lotteries moving into the online realm represents a threat to the commercial casino sector’s own internet gaming ambitions in the United States.